Overlord: The Exiled
by Reis Nailo
Summary: When Ainz is warped to the New World, so is the player that Touch Me drove away from them. With heated words and boiling emotions, Ainz and Draconis begin to chisel cracks into their relationship, with neither thinking clearly, will tragedy end one of them? Both of them? An outsider may be in position to pounce, but who is this? Read on. Apologies for the long hiatus!
1. Prologue

**Overlord: The Exile**

When the player that Touch Me ran off from Nines Own Goal finds himself in the new world; he goes off to learn of the New World he finds himself in. Friendships and alliances will flourish, but will old animosities cause a potentially world ending clash of powers? What of the kingdoms that inhabit the continent?

 **Prologue: Separated in a New World**

"Artorias! You know we could've met at the Castle of Pendragon one last time instead of in front of my personal dungeon right?"

The man talking with a beautiful dragoness teased with a smile. The humanoid female dragon laughed right along side him. She had soft brunette hair that was held in a pony tail that began at the nape of her neck and flowed down to her lower back. A slender tail began at the small of her back and ended with symmetrical fin-like prongs at its tip. Her wrists and ankles as well as her face and neck bore scales instead of skin and were a stark black. So too was her tail covered in them. Her eyes glowed around the irises in bright blue though the irises themselves were emerald green like jewels in a box.

Eschewing her armor and weapons, she wore a regal set of clothes that were the sign of her status as guild leader, deemed Queen by all the members. It was simple, yet elegant and courtly, yet functional. She tapped her closest friend and confidant on the nose with an index finger, though she had to stand on her tip toes to do so. A mischievous smile crossed her face.

"Hahah! Yes we could have, but those that could make it today on the last day of the servers said that we wanted to make it a two part moment. First half of the day here and then the final part at the castle. Though can I help it if I want to share a bit of the final day of YGGDRASIL with my IRL husband in game?"

Now it was his turn to laugh as he shot her an amused emoji. He had gotten her into the DMMO-RPG YGGDRASIL shortly after they had married IRL. She had loved the world's environments and freedom of creation. Hilariously, she had turned into a great player too and soon with many friends that joined them, formed her own guild. He had not joined due to already belonging to one. Though it hadn't been a guild officially at the time, but a clan. Nine's Own Goal; that had been led by Touch Me. Though after several more players had joined the clan, the wear had begun to show and during one disagreement, it had become so heated that he and Touch Me had nearly come to blows in a serious argument.

Not wanting to be the one who would shatter the peace of the clan, he had patched things over with Touch Me in private and them formally withdrew from the clan. He hadn't immediately joined her guild either, preferring to solo play for a while and find himself a new home, which came to be his personal dungeon. It hadn't been easy to clear even as a level 100, but he'd managed and been richly rewarded in return.

His private home in the world of YGGDRASIL was a dragon lair meant for a level 85 Wyrm and its brood. Clearing it had taken him three weeks, one really brutal death, and finally calling his wife to assist in the last boss, but now he had a dungeon home that had registered as a Grand Fortress.

 _Honestly, I never thought that this lair would be that big and give me such a huge place, but it's been great._

He'd gained a Six Floor layout and 1000 Levels to distribute among custom NPCs and he'd broken down and spent cash on improving it further to 1500 NPC levels. Knowing that he couldn't possibly manage it all on his own, he registered the officers of Artorias's guild and the Queen herself as permanent guests with privileges except for administrative ones and extravagant guest rooms for each of them as compensation.

"It's the perfect picnic getaway for the guild! You can see our castle from the entrance. It's like you're a guardian dragon for your wife!"

He laughed heartily at the memory of Mordred's comment about his dungeon's location. From the mountain side entrance you could see the Crystal Castle of Pendragon for the guild: Avalon. Ever since then the guild had used his proverbial front door as a meeting point for raids and other guild activities if he was participating.

"Thanks Artorias. This has been a great run for us I'm sad to see it end, but I'll never forget this game and all it's experiences good and bad."

Artorias nodded.

"You're right my love. Though, Mordred, Gareth, and Lancelot should be here by now . . ."

He frowned.

"Only three of them? I know that we all had that therapy session back at the Veteran's Association meeting, but only three of the twelve?"

They had all loved mythology, especially the Arthurian legends. As a result, when twelve of their associates and comrades from their real world lives had gotten into the game, it had spiraled from there. When he had finally joined, they declared him the Whispered Thirteenth Knight of the Round and the "Shadow of the Queen".

The other thing was that most of them were military veterans from various nations.

Sure enough, three voices met their ears and they turned to see their friends jogging in their direction. Two men and one woman joined them at the entrance of his lair. They all wore their guild's ceremonial dress uniform. Styled to appear like swallowtail coats with knee high greaves and dress gloves with vest and dress shirt and tie. Each of them carried a sword on them, though this was not their personalized gear.

"Hey, you three made it!" Artorias called out to them as she began to jog to meet them halfway.

They had all not only become a good guild, but a known group that role played the legends of King Arthur and other fantasy legends as well.

 _Guess it's time to wind down to the end of the servers . . ._ He smirked as he remembered all the time he'd invested into the game. _Time to end the legacy so to speak . . ._

He was proud to have been a part of Avalon, even as a pseudo-member and not official. They were famous for being one of the smallest guilds member numbers-wise, but utterly powerful - ranking 15th out of thousands. They had assembled and managed to defeat two World Class Enemies by themselves, though not without taking a beating, _a_ _lot_ of catch up leveling had happened for many of them as a result but the satisfaction of the achievements had been far more than worth it. Due to the events of the second World Enemy they had triumphed over; he had gained a secret class due to his Racial and Class selections and levels. It was something that he had guarded with his friends ever since given the ultra aggressive information war that happened over that kind of in game unlocks over the net and forums.

Why wasn't he a member of Avalon? The Game Rules. A guild could only ever possess a single dungeon HQ and if they wanted another one that they had found, then they were required to relinquish the rights to the one they currently owned. Due to his race, he felt that he should have a lair. As such, he remained his own, single man guild. Some of his friends called him selfish, but then again, when the role play topic came up, it made more sense to them.

He was an elite race: Dragon Ascendant. A True Blooded dragon that could switch between a human form and a devastating dragon form. Granted there were some crazy penalties to go with it, but the pros far outstripped the cons if you were smart. Fortunately for the majority of YGGDRASIL, not many wanted to play the powerful - some would say overpowered - race due to those cons.

" _All dragons should have a lair and a treasure horde right? I can't do that with joining another guild that has a Headquarters already. You guys just make me a permanent guest and I'll do the same for you guys in the lair. Rooms and everything!"_

They had all had different responses, from amused laughter to frustration, but they had all agreed with him in the end. And having the extra benefits of guesting with a guild HQ was nice for extra storage and other perks.

They had all taken the time to leisurely walk the halls of the Crystal Castle Pendragon, taking in the scenery and sharing fond memories. Lancelot had gained victory in the PvP arenas and had become the 9th and final World Champion Class Warrior. He personally hadn't entered that last tournament mainly because Lancelot knew his class and race and held a distinct advantage with his equipment and their equal levels. Mordred had garnered a reputation as a PvP monster rivaling Lancelot. Gareth, the only other woman of the guild was known for being the generous and beautiful Knight of the Round who helped new players adjust to the game and got them on their way to enjoying everything YGGDRASIL had to offer.

They'd held a last grand feast for the people (their NPCs).

It was a heck of a time for their last day online. They'd thanked their NPCs for their service, used about a quarter of their collective wealth to do one last upgrade to Avalon and his own dungeon lair and NPCs.

With the last five minutes left before the servers shut down forever, they all agreed to return to their private chambers for one last moment to reflect. This meant that he returned to his lair and rallied his NPC guardians. With all of them before him, he remembered one that he hadn't tended to for some time. He had a mixture of NPCs race and class wise, but everyone has their favorites. The sister assassins were a favorite of his and his wife had teased him about treating them more like daughters than NPCs. Not that her teasing had been malicious. They were in a way like children to them. Yet the one he had forgotten weighed heavily on his mind and he sought to see to it one last time.

[ _Message_ ] _Hey Artorias, I'm going to go back to the Tomb and check in on my first NPC. See you back home IRL._

He got a smiley emoji as an answer message.

"Akame, Kurome, follow me. Party up." He gave the command and they appeared in the edge of his vision as party members. The two bowed in sync and fell into a guard formation, two on either side of him.

"Now to see . . . oh crap, the time!"

The clock display read: 11:59:56 . . . 57 . . . 58 . . . 59 . . . 00:00:00 . . .

01 . . . 02 . . . 03 . . .

 _What? . . . What? Wait . . . did they change something?_

"Lord Draconis? Is something troubling you?"

He looked back and to his right in surprise to see Kurome tilting her head to the side in confusion and concern.

"Indeed my lord, something has you troubled. If you could share it, we would do what we can to help you."

Continuing to turn around to look at Akame, who held a sincere expression that showed her own concern for his well being.

 _They're . . . they're talking?! Showing expressions . . . that isn't part of YGGDRASIL._

Akame and Kurome glanced at each other at his silence. Realizing that they were actually waiting for him to respond to them, he shook his head.

"Yes, but I want to confirm some things before I make any drastic conclusions. Follow me outside."

The two nodded and fell back into step with him as he proceeded to the exit. His mind started racing at a rapid pace as they closed the distance to the entrance.

 _I can feel the ground beneath my feet even better than before. I can feel the cool air of the cave tunnel entrance. I can smell . . ._ smell! _That wasn't part of YGGDRASIL. Akame and Kurome are talking and making expressions, answering oblique orders even! If I assume the other NPCs in my dungeon are now the same, then . . ._

He quickened his pace and notice that he wasn't breathing hard at all. He hadn't been in this good a condition since he'd been discharged on medical grounds from his service. Exiting his lair's entrance, he gaped as he saw a brilliant sun filled sky. Yet the Crystal Castle was now gone, replaced by a huge lake and miles of lush forest. He also noted that he was on a mountain side and that the forest itself was actually surrounded on all sides by an expansive mountain range. Not a road was in sight. The air was purer than anything he'd inhaled before. A plethora of others scents also filled his sinuses and he was amazed to find himself picking out each one and identifying them.

He tried cycling through his system calls and GM service network options but got nothing positive back. Swallowing in apprehension, he tried to [ _Message_ ] Artorias and the others. She responded almost immediately and though she was controlling herself, he could hear her underlying panic.

 _Draconis?! Oh thank god. Where are you? Your cavern, no, the whole mountain overlooking Pendragon Castle is gone. We're somewhere completely different, the NPCs are talking and praising us and in a panic over the sudden changes in scenery! Lancelot and Mordred are out calming the NPCs down and Gareth is working on figuring out what happened, but we're just as panicked and confused!_

"Easy Artorias! I'm alright. I'm going through the same kind of shock here. Akame and Kurome are talking to me and I'm getting my bearings. Now stay calm and listen to me. I think we've been . . . well . . . y'know those world transporting shows we watched when we were younger?"

There was silence on the other end for a moment.

 _I see . . . oh dear . . . gods Draconis, what are we going to do? If the NPCs are alive now then that means that I'm . . . I'm their Queen . . ._

He could hear the disbelief in her words. Not that he could blame his wife.

"Listen. See to the protection of Avalon and all those within her walls. If people come to the gates and aren't hostile, trade and barter information but don't compromise Avalon and its people to do so. Go about gleaning as much as you can. Get farming and harvesting going and prepare to dig in for the long haul. You know how those world swapping shows went. Gareth watched them with us, she'll help too. Explain what you can to Lancelot and Mordred. Don't worry about me. I'll make my way around the world and put out feelers for you guys. Play it cautious here. I'll keep in touch as I learn things. We don't know how powerful we are compared to whatever is here. We might be weaker here, though I hope that isn't the case."

When she responded she sounded better grounded, but still slightly shaken.

 _Okay. I understand. Just be careful for god's sake! Gareth's coming back. I'll talk to you later._

"I got you. Take care of yourself. I love you."

 _I love you too._

He sighed as he ended the spell. Turning to enter his lair again, he motioned for the sisters to join him. A heavy frown creased his brow as he trudged back toward the first antechamber of the First Floor. As they passed the first set of floor sentries that he'd been granted by the system for dungeon HQ, he motioned for them to stand cautious for intruders. They saluted him with their spears of mythril as they're armor clanked to attention. Golem soldiers much like the Chinese terracotta army of legend with mythril weaponry, mainly spears and swords and no need of armor due to their construct nature. They were level 30 mobs, but he hoped that whatever the power level here was that it couldn't just run them other with ease.

"Akame, please go on ahead and gather the guardians of the lair in the audience chamber. Kurome, please gather my primary gear set."

The two sisters nodded and melded into the shadows. [ _Shadow Walker_ ], an ability that was a potent passive that allowed them to disappear into shadows - including their own - and reappear out of another set of shadows as set distance away. At the levels that they were, they had a range of 100 meters in all directions.

Unlike the other NPCs of his lair, he had leveled Akame and Kurome via the NPC party up function, allowing NPCs to join in dungeons, pvp, and other activities to earn exp and treasure. It had the penalty of their gains being at a steep 50% gain compared to the player, which when combined with the massive penalty for his person as a Dragon was utterly brutal. Especially considering that he suffered a 65% Exp penalty when earning experience from killing mobs, quest completions, and other events. Yet he'd found it oddly satisfying, fulfilling even. He'd also found that by doing their leveling in this manner, they could gain access to classes normally non selectable if made from allotted levels provided by a dungeon.

In truth, with the exception of their full cloaks, the gear they had was all from treasure hunting and dungeon grinding. By finding most of their gear and gifting it to them, he'd saved a massive amount of revenue rather than relying on his craftsman dwarf NPCs in the lair. Not that he didn't use the dwarves he created, but the costs were exponentially high compared to doing it yourself. Draconis didn't have any creation classes so he didn't really have too much of a choice if one of his friends that did have them wasn't online.

Arriving at his audience chamber, he was happy to see Akame with all of the guardians. Seven in total, each of them level 100. At a glance, he could remember every detail of each of them. From right to left he mentally tallied their attendance.

Luserina: Elven Trailblazer and Sniper

Schwarzer Tod: Human Archmage

Chronos Timetable: Seraph Star Sage and Grandseer

Cecilia von Houten: Human Troubadour and Grandmaster

The Bunny: The Killer No One Suspects

Hazuki: Kitsune Blatt Meister and Master of Arms

Samael: Dragon Blooded Reaver and Commander of the Guardians

Now he knew that all of them were ready to answer his requests and orders, but he saw them as a valued comrades. They all acknowledged his presence in various forms, bows, salutes, curtsies, etc. He smiled openly to all of them. He truly was happy to know that despite the circumstances, he had reliable people with him, not just players, but those they had created as well.

"Thank you all for coming. I know that it is late, but we have an emergency on our hands."

The group nodded and the Seraphim among them stepped forward with a furrowed brow. His voice was soft and melodic, yet firm and masculine.

"Lord Brightblade. I have sensed a change in the stars and even the firmament. The Crystal Castle of your beloved is also been moved. I fear that the world as we knew it is changed . . . nay . . . no more. We've been ripped to another star."

The other guardians looked to Chronos in shock. Akame took her place at Draconis's left as he stood in front of everyone. Luserina nodded despite her surprise. Off to the edge of the chambers a wolf the size of a war horse lounged. His silver fur was armored at certain points and it seemed agitated, but stayed reasonably mannered. Her companion as a her classes allowed was her stalwart partner.

"I thought the air had shifted too suddenly. It's different, yet not necessarily unwelcoming. I should get the hang of the new surroundings relatively quick. You need only ask and I would have our new environment fully plotted out."

Draconis nodded in understanding but held a hand up to forestall her departure.

"When we are done here please do so out to a five mile radius, but wait a moment. There are things to discuss. As Chronos has stated, we are no longer at the same location, nay the same world possibly. Castle Pendragon of our beloved neighbors and allies is no longer near our home. However, Queen Artorias along with three of her Knights of Round have also found themselves along with the castle and its denizens transported here. Where they are exactly is not yet known to them, but the Queen and I have been in contact."

Sighs of what he thought were relief went through all of them but The Bunny. Of course, The Bunny flicked his ears. He was the most frightening of all the guardians because he was too dang cute to be a threat. Then again he had made The Bunny at the - admittedly at the time hilarious - idea to mimic the Monty Python flick that they'd seen as a spoof of Arthurian Legends.

The actual result was a cute murder machine that had sent player raiders of his home fleeing in abject terror. Now that the world was real, at least as far as he could feel and tell, it was a bit bone chilling to know that someone unfortunate would die by the buck teeth of cuteness . . . Draconis shuddered a bit inside.

 _At least I made sure that it never went after allies, recognized friends, and guests. Unless you count it charming the pants off someone to get petted . . ._

The human female politely raised her hand, seeking permission to address everyone. At his nod, she gestured to everyone present. Her emerald green locks swayed gently as she looked around.

"It is a blessing to have any of our allies with us here regardless of the distance. Though it is probably wise to seek out their exact whereabouts to reinforce each other."

Draconis smiled with pride. Data inscribed into custom NPCs dramatically improved many things, including stats and behavior patterns in combat. He had created Cecilia as a mounted mage and healer on horseback who was also a military strategist and tactician. The background for her had been some of the longest written and she was made out to be of noble birth and standing from Avalon's Pendragon Castle. To see them actually speak and give advice that fit their backgrounds filled him with a euphoric sense of accomplishment.

The others made sounds of agreement and her fellow human in the group - Schwarzer Tod spoke up.

"Indeed Cecilia. I don't fault you the suggestion. But who shall we send?" He looked to Draconis as he asked all present. "You have a personal stake as your home is the Queen's Castle, but we all swore our oaths to Master Brightblade first, Avalon second due to his status as the Queen's beloved."

Draconis found himself chuckling good naturedly as he nodded with Tod's assessment.

 _Now I'm_ really, REALLY _glad we decided to make NPCs with matching stories in Avalon and my Lair. With this situation, having them actually have personal stakes and concerns with each other will make coordinating so much easier._

Cecilia realized her error in planning and bowed slightly to him.

"I apologize my liege. I was over eager to reunite The Lair with Avalon."

"No, no. It's fine Cecilia. Though Tod does raise a valid point. We know little to nothing about this New World and going about blind could be disastrous. After Luserina returns from reconnoitering the surrounding area and reporting, we will decide on how to set about this area. Until then I want the Lair as a whole on their guard, but do not strike anything or anyone unless they enter the Lair and begin their own aggression. Prioritize capture over killing if the assailants are sentient. Knowledge is going to be our prized weapon and greatest weakness for a while."

All the guardians nodded their understanding. Satisfied, Draconis began giving out instructions as Kurome arrived with a pair of dwarves carrying a set of equipment like they were the finest of treasures. In truth, they were. God Tier equipment that was his primary gear set. One of which was actually stronger than all the rest as a World Item.

"Tod and Cecilia, double check The Lair's magic defenses as well as the other denizens here. Hazuki, please check in with the armory and guards to ensure they understand orders. Luserina, you have your orders already. Chronos and Samael, come with me once I gear up. Akame, Kurome, assist Hazuki . . . and thank you Kurome. You as well Biggs and Wedge."

The two dwarves smiled widely. It was their jobs as blacksmiths and masters of the forges to make sure everything was well maintained in The Lair. They pounded their stout chests with fists.

"Think nothing of it Dragon Lord. We are happy to have such stable workshops! We'll be at the forges ready for anything!"

Both of them gave him a thumbs up and laughed as they departed. Luserina rolled her eyes, they were so loud to her it made her cringe, but she knew better than to pick a fight with allies and fellow vassals of the Dragon Lord. Draconis waved his hand at the equipment before him and it flowed to him, fitting to him in a bright flash of light.

Now outfitted in his regalia, the group bowed on one knee. They were all blessed that when he wasn't in his regalia, they didn't have to stand on strictest ceremony, but this was the first time he'd worn his strongest gear in some time, having one other set that he also liked to use dependent on the situation.

"Our Liege Lord Draconis Brightblade! We are yours to command!"

 _Wow that's actually a bit humbling to be addressed like that. Definitely going to take some getting used too . . . I can't imagine what Artorias is going through with the others . . . hoo boy._

"My thanks, all of you. You have your orders. Let's reconvene here in an hour. Dismissed!"

* * *

 ** _Meanwhile . . . In The Great Tomb of Nazarick . . ._**

Within the 5th Floor of Nazarick's Glaciers, Cocytus had returned to his floor after swearing fidelity to Lord Ainz Ooal Gown. In the largest ice formation on the floor, frozen in its center was a beautiful woman with ice blue hair that flowed down to her knees. A single rapier lay before the ice. It was not Cocytus's, so he had no place touching it. Not that he would. He was too honorable to touch another's rightful weapon. Even if the weapon was a gift from the Supreme One that had been banished due to a falling out with Lord Touch Me and several others of the 41 Supreme Beings.

His warrior spirit and pride couldn't understand it.

"WHY WOULD SOMEONE AS HONORABLE AS _THAT_ SUPREME ONE BE BANISHED YET HIS CREATION ALLOWED TO STILL REMAIN? DID HE ABANDON HER? NO . . . LORD TOUCH ME MENTIONED TO LORD AINZ THAT THEY HAD 'PATCHED THINGS UP'. THAT HE LEFT WILLINGLY TO PRESERVE THE GLORY OF THE SUPREME ONES. BUT WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? I DO NOT UNDERSTAND."

The woman in the ice was thought by the Floor Guardians to have been frozen as punishment for her master's misconduct, but he had heard differently during that conversation between Touch Me and Momonga.

* * *

 **[Some time ago . . . 2128, March 12]**

"What do you mean Touch-san? You met with Draconis-san?" Momonga gave the World Champion of Ainz Ooal Gown a confused emoji to further stress his lack of understanding.

Touch Me and Momonga had come to the Glacier floor to talk since a lot of the other members didn't like the cold arena too much.

"I met with Draconis-san yesterday over lunch."

"Really?! You two know each other IRL?"

A surprised and shocked emoji appeared beside Momonga's face. Touch Me nodded.

"We do. He is a war veteran from the European conflicts ten years ago. He has survived . . . quite a lot. He has seen groups of men and women splinter and shatter under pressure and knows when the kettle is boiling over so to speak. He felt like his morals and honor were straining things too much and my own ideals had begun to fall. That I was too remiss in my responsibility and had lost my good sense."

The Arcology War, which had sparked a crazy fad of Neo Nazi uniform trends as a side result had lasted around five years and was mainly kept to the European theater. The fighting had been grisly and brutal.

"Touch-san?"

"Hrmph. Yes. Do you remember when you all PK'ed that group of PK'ers that ganged up on that one new player a so long ago?"

Momonga did indeed. A new player that had decided on making a Grotesque had been getting PK'ed by a group of significantly higher leveled players. He, Ulbert, Tabula, and Draconis had shown up and stopped it by PK'ing the PK'ers. Draconis had done the bare minimum to beat them and began helping the new player. When Ulbert and Tabula began essentially torturing the final PK'er, Draconis had stepped in and admonished them both for "taking it too far."

Ulbert, with his unhealthy fixation on 'Evil', went on a rant calling out Draconis on not knowing how it felt to be picked on and worthless. The utter rage that had erupted from Draconis at the slander had shocked them. He'd always been fair, helpful, and strangely understanding of many of their fellows. Blue Planet, White Lace, and HeroHero had gotten along with him famously for his desire for RP and background stories with detailed characters. He'd taken lessons in AI programming from HeroHero and graphics design with White Lace and Blue Planet.

They all knew that he was well spoken, obviously well educated. It was also known that he was happily married, his wife even played the game with him! Even if she wasn't a part of the clan Draconis still made time to play with the rest of them and his wife had actually respected that. Ulbert had later confessed that he was really jealous of Draconis because he "got the girl" and "had a good life".

Momonga had not known that he was a veteran of the Arcology War.

Suddenly, his outrage made a lot more sense as Touch Me explained Draconis's condition to him. Draconis in real life was a cripple. Permanently confined to a wheel chair when he had taken a grenade for civilians caught in the crossfire and lost his legs at the knees. He'd also lost an eye the same day in addition to all the shrapnel. The recovery and therapy had been horrid and he had been scarred emotionally from all the atrocities of that conflict. Yet despite it all he pressed on and now headed up a therapy and recovery organization for veterans of the Arcology War. He had even used YGGDRASIL's Dive tech as a way of therapy and cooping. Draconis never talked about it, but always mentioned that he loved the sensation of simply being able to walk, much less run and jump.

Everyone had always asked what he meant by that, but he had always just chuckled and waved it off. Now Momonga knew.

Touch Me began talking again.

"When I confronted him about the incident later I told him that he had gotten too worked up and needed to apologize. He told me that he felt the clan was going in the wrong direction with some of the newest members taking after Ulbert's 'Evil' theme. That I'd lost sight of what I had originally started the clan Nine's Own Goal as. A clan to help those in need and nurture their growth in the game we all love to play."

Touch Me's voice was heavier than he had ever heard the man.

"I told him that it was him just being paranoid. Do you know what he told me? 'You are a fantastic player of this game. I love YGGDRASIL and play this game whenever I can, but still can't seem to beat you reliably. One day I will beat you on a consistent basis, but I think you'll defeat yourself faster than I can rise above you because in your desire to help people you've lost the ability to judge their character. Stopping PK'ers is fine, but becoming the bully? Rationalizing actions that other PK'ers wouldn't dare do for fear of account lock down and suspension? I get theming and RP, but a line needs to be drawn. You've lost track of that line'."

Momonga was stunned. Then he remembered when Touch Me had saved him long ago. Draconis wasn't part of the First Nine, but he had been a powerful asset. His initial levels had been brutally slow going as a Dragon racial member. Dragons only earned a fraction of the normal exp due to their ridiculous advantages despite their few, but glaring weaknesses. However the exp hit was harsh enough that very, very few players willingly went down that race when you were only ever allowed one avatar.

"I think that Draconis sees too much of the atrocities and corruption that he witnessed on the battlefields in that last incident and I was insensitive to his past experiences. To a man of Draconis's caliber, Ulbert's a ranting child. He didn't have a posh life or lives easy like he thinks Draconis does. But I only realize that now and it's too late, I ran him off. A friend I have back in our real world has left us in game. Perhaps . . . perhaps it's time to re-evaluate."

* * *

Determined to at least get him back into the game of YGGDRASIL; Draconis would be contacted by Momonga with an offer to come join the guild. He would not accept the guild invite, but returned to the game at Momonga's persistent e-mails and arrived at Nazarick as a guest by Momonga and majority vote.

During his visits, he would end up creating the woman encased in ice before Cocytus now with HeroHero, White Lace and Blue Planet's help. However, Ulbert and a few others more like him had created more tension and Draconis finally stopped showing up to visit, instead gaming with his friends from the VA and his wife. A year and a half later, Touch Me would leave the game for good after another heated argument with a disgruntled Ulbert over the same topics yet again.

It was something that Cocytus had never understood, though he could not doubt the similarities between Touch Me and Ulbert's creations of his comrades Sebas Tian and Demiurge. He looked up to the woman in crystalline ice left by the Supreme One Exile Draconis Brightblade. What was her name again? It came back to him and he released a mist of frost in respect to a fellow ice wielder.

"ESDEATH."

Little did the Floor Guardian realize, but the woman in the ice never lost her sense of awareness. She had sensed her creator preparing to return to visit her again, but suddenly was ripped farther away. Cocytus could not know of it, but she found his warrior presence and steadfast loyalty admirable. It was this factor that sated her desire to break free of her resting place and join her Supreme One. A kindred bond of warriors and wielders of ice was what she felt toward the Floor Guardian who unconsciously acted as a taciturn guardsman as she rested in addition to his regular duties. If she could talk to him, she would explain to him why her master had done such a thing as he had talked to her about many of his concerns like a aide-de-camp when she was resting.

 _Thank you Cocytus . . . for not just condemning my creator blindly . . . what?!_

Cocytus also tensed as a figure teleported into existence before them. He was accompanied by Ainz, but Cocytus remained alert. Draconis Brightblade . . . the Exile had returned.

 **Please Review and Look Forward to the next chapter.**

 **Yes, some characters from Akame Ga Kill are here as NPCs. For those of you waiting on Code Geass KoR 2nd Advent, I'm waiting for season three of Code Geass to come and go and watch it all in search of some fresh inspiration. Anyway. Happy Holidays.**


	2. Chapter 1: First Encounter

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Chapter 1: First Encounter**

 **Disclaimer and Author's Note: Overlord is licensed by YenPress and owned by Kugane Maruyama. Please support the published books.**

 **Draconis Brightblade and the NPCs of his creation are my own ideas and tributes to other games/shows. Everyone should know where Akame, Kurome, and Esdeath originate from. They are the property of their respective creators/publishers. Hazuki is the character of the same name from the game Suikoden V, though her character will have differences in personality and overall character.**

 **Many of the descriptions for armor, races I.E. Artorias, Draconis, Lancelot, Mordred, Gareth. Will be from other shows and games and receive their call outs at the end of the chapters. Though if you are keen and guess it right in a review before the give away at the end of a chapter, you get a cookie!**

 **Artorias is also my own, but no you Fate/Stay fans, it's NOT Saber. The concept of a female Arthur may be from that, but this isn't her if my description of her in the previous chapter was any indication. That being said, I am a HUGE fan of Ufotable and Type/Moon. This just isn't a crossover.**

 **There is SO MUCH anyone can get away with in writing FF for Overlord due to the way Maruyama-san has written YGGDRASIL. With thousands of spells, classes, races, items, etc. there can be any number of players and powers. That being said I'll also be doing my best not to make certain things so OP that everyone just steamrolls the New World, not that Ainz is having much trouble in the canon content . . . .**

 **Anyway! Enough ranting for now. On with the show!**

* * *

Draconis along with Chronos and Samael flew out of the entrance of The Lair and gained altitude at a rapid pace. He secretly exulted in the the feeling of wind on his face and the clean air. It was a feeling like no other and he couldn't help but laugh as they ascended. Behind him Chronos and Samael shared a look.

"Our Lord is enjoying himself despite our situation my friend."

Chronos spoke just loud enough to be heard by the Commander of the Guardians. The Dragon Blooded man smirked and nodded in agreement.

"Hmph, I cannot bring myself to question it. He has always thrived in high pressure situations according to Lady Akame and Lady Kurome."

Akame and Kurome were in their opinion his most loyal and trusted retainers as they were the only ones who traveled with him on a regular basis. Rumors also spoke of another retainer imprisoned in exchange for their Lord's freedom without retaliations from the other party. Then again, it was also rumored that their lost comrade was Akame's rival. They did not speak of it in front of their Lord for fear of dredging up unpleasant memories. They had also heard from his whispers that he would regularly visit his lost retainer.

Draconis came to a halt miles above the New World. It was truly a spectacular view. With his draconic sight he could see beyond the mountains he now found his home in and he had the feeling the technology level was somewhere around the medieval ages with magic and fantasy thrown in. The one village that he could make out with clarity didn't appear to be quite up to snuff to what he'd read and studied about the middle of the 20th century housing and economy. It was south? North? Did this new world even have a magnetic north?

 _Hmm . . . inventory . . . oh? Aha!_

His had reached into what appeared to his retainers as a pocket void and pulled out the desired object. A small compass.

 _Well, that's interesting . . . good to see the inventory menu works . . . though I probably should avoid doing that around the general populace of the world here until I find out just how magically advanced they are . . ._

Glancing at the compass as he held in level in the palm of his hand, the tiny indicator spun round in a circle once before pointing in a solid, steady direction.

"Ah, so that," he spoke as he pointed in the same direction as the compass pointer. "is North and that village is Southeast . . . good to know."

"My Lord, there is a pair of powerful individuals many miles to our North West, at our altitude."

Heeding Chronos's warning, Draconis looked in that direction and squinted. Even with his racial sight enhancements, he couldn't make out distinct differences, but there were two pinpricks in the distance. He was about to ask just how Chronos had even noticed when he remembered what he had made Chronos as. Their home's early warning and intelligence/security guardian. A diviner angel of the highest combat order. Ultra specializing had greatly diminished his fighting ability, but his scry and anti-intelligence magic was unparalleled in YGGDRASIL. If you were out in the open without any magic guarding you against scry, he could find you. Even if you had it, [ _Penetrate Ward_ ] and [ _True Seeing_ ] was a part of his racial kit, so good luck . . .

 _It figures he would already be on watch for us as we ascended into the sky. Still though . . . nice catch._

"Please use [ _Greater Scry_ ] and [ _Shared Vision_ ] after you have deployed defensive divination wards Chronos."

The high angel did so and immediately gasped in shock. As Draconis came under the effect of [ _Shared Vision_ ] he did as well. A warrior in jet black full plate armor with a flowing crimson cape hovered in the air, but their was no flesh and blood head adorning the body, but a skull bleached white. While he didn't get a particular vibe from that one, the frog headed demon in a orange and white pinstripe suit did. He knew Demiurge at a glance as Ulbert's NPC of Nazarick. But if that was the case then who was the armored skull? It didn't take him long to mentally process the people in the guild roster who were skeletal undead.

"No way . . . is that . . . Momonga?! So Ainz Ooal Gown got transported too? Last I checked, only he was consistently . . . hmmm . . . Chronos and Samael, return to the lair and await my return. I'm making a visit."

Chronos shook his head vehemently.

"My Lord we can't let you go alone. The Elder Lich is!"

"Please Chronos, peace. Momonga of Ainz Ooal Gown was one of several people of their Guild that I had no qualms with. In fact he is actually pretty level compared to some others. I think it will be alright. They are in the same situation as us, should we not consolidate information to better our chances of survival?"

Chronos frowned, he could understand the logic, but as an angel he couldn't fully trust something that was his antithesis. Still, his Lord was very magnanimous, just not tolerant of fools who took things to the extreme. Samael could feel his comrade's struggle and cleared his throat.

"Hrmph! Excuse my interruption my Lord, but if you are to go would you grant us the consolation of taking either Lady Akame or Kurome with you?"

Draconis sighed in defeat and nodded.

"Very well you two. Akame, attend me."

At his voice, the [ _Message_ ] was sent and Akame arrived from below with her own [ _Fly_ ] spell. When she arrived the two nodded in difference to her and bowed to their master before returning to The Lair far below.

"Well . . . let's go say hello shall we?"

* * *

 **Great Tomb of Nazarick**

Momonga had finished giving Mare a Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown when a powerful presence forced him and the two Floor Guardians to turn their attention skyward. Inside his helmet, Momonga's jaw gaped. He couldn't believe his eyes as a crimson haired man who appeared to be in his mid-twenties garbed in a regalia that rivaled his God Tier set descended slowly toward with with a wave and toothy grin. Behind him was a young woman with raven black hair and a single katana. He knew both of these two.

"Draconis?!"

"Good evening Momonga! One of my retainers noticed you and Demiurge far out from us doing very likely the same thing we were. I hope I'm not interrupting anything vital, but I'd like to talk a bit about our situation."

He gestured up at the sky as he greeted them. The young woman landed behind him and bowed in Momonga's direction. As a peer of Draconis, she knew Momonga as a superior being and one of the 41 Supreme Beings of Ainz Ooal Gown. She would give him the appropriate respect associated with the title. Should he give the order however, she would attack without hesitation, but she knew that such a thing was unlikely.

Momonga nodded before holding up a hand to forestall any more talk.

"Albedo, I gift you a Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown as fitting for your title and responsibilities as Captain of the Floor Guardians. Serve Nazarick well. I will treat with our guests."

The snow white dressed Guardian nodded and bowed deeply as she received the ring. Momonga apologized to Demiurge, stating that he was to receive one at a later time. The demon nodded his understanding though he kept his gaze on Draconis up until he teleported away with Momonga and the woman attending him melted into the shadows. Even he couldn't detect her anymore, and that worried him.

"Why has the Exiled One returned now?"

Albedo gave him a curious look as she came down from her joyous high of the ring gift from her love. She understood Demiurge's concern. It was extremely strange that he would return now of all times. However it was not unknown that he had visited the 41 Supreme Beings often. Rumors had been among many denizens of Nazarick that he had been a 42nd member, but falling out with a few members had led to his exile. Yet, she had heard Momonga, her beloved mutter that he had hoped that he would return, and was satisfied with having him be able to visit freely. He had fought with the Supreme Ones as an ally many times and yet had also fought against a few of them at one point. It was strange, yet Lord Momonga still held him as a friend, calling him a . . . what was it? A counter balance?

"I know not Demiurge, but I think it is fortuitous. Exiled or not, Master Draconis has been a friend of the Supreme Ones and even had the Greatest Warrior's respect and friendship."

"Lord Touch Me? You forget that he also held an active grudge against my creator, the Strongest Mage!"

Albedo knew this, all the Floor Guardians did, but they were not to question the relationships for the Supreme Ones. She knew Draconis had done much for Ainz Ooal Gown, yet had walked his own path. She was also wary of the Exiled One, but if Lord Momonga held him as a friend, who were they to question it?

"Remember Demiurge. Lord Momonga, who mercifully remained with us when all others left us, holds him as an ally of Nazarick. We would be fools to question our benevolent ruler's judgment!"

"Ah. Of course. You are correct Albedo."

* * *

 **Throne Room**

"You surprised me Draconis! I thought I was alone in this new place."

"I can safely say we are not the only ones. My wife and a few of her knights are also here, though elsewhere . . . Akame, you can go to the lounge and relax for a bit. This needs to be private."

Akame bowed deeply to both Supreme Ones and left via the doors.

Momonga placed a skeletal hand to his skull in frustration. Shaking his head slightly, he had to admit, Draconis's gear was just as impressive as his own. He hadn't had a lot of it when he had left Ainz Ooal Gown's guest list after the last falling out with Ulbert and a few others of Ainz Ooal Gown.

"That's good to hear Draconis." Momonga remembered Touch Me's conversation and as the Guild Leader, he felt responsible.

 _Should I reveal what Touch Me made me aware of? Would he hate me for it? Argh, I hate this! This could blow up in my face, but as the Guild Leader, it falls to me for the faults and good points of the guild._

"Hey Draconis . . . listen, I - Touch Me-san told me a bit about your past."

Draconis raised an eyebrow, but remained silent. Momonga didn't sense any hostility so he pushed on.

"Knowing what he told me, your clashes with Ulbert-san made a bit more sense. But why didn't you say anything about it?"

Draconis sighed heavily and sat on the steps leading up to the throne that Momonga sat in.

"I didn't say anything because it is not something you can understand from hearing it. Anyone who has gone through the hell that was that stupid war has an unspoken agreement with any who served on either side of the war. We don't bring it up if we can help it. It can't be described, and looking in from without doesn't do the nightmare justice."

He laughed then. It was half true, half empty and tired.

"Besides, you know how Ulbert and Touch were. Going back and forth without end. It was a real world problem of Ulbert's that he couldn't keep out of the game. It chaffed quite frankly. I loved YGGDRASIL too much to get bogged down and constantly listen to the ranting. So I removed myself. I had other things to accomplish."

"Hmm. I see. I guess I really can't blame you there. Had I had the perspective I do now, I can see your side too. Well, that's not helping us now, where to from here?"

Draconis put a hand to his chin in thought.

"Well, there is a village to the southeast of my Lair that I want to investigate. I suggest gathering as much information as possible, but even you must have realized that. We are completely blind here and you and I both know how dangerous that can be."

One of the World Enemies that everyone had faced had been a blind fight without forewarning about any of its abilities. The results had been really painful.

"Agreed."

"I suggest investigating our local surroundings and then checking in on each other later."

Momonga had already planned on doing so, but hearing it from a friend and fellow player who had harder experience due to his soldier status was reassuring for his own confidence.

"Oh!"

Draconis's outburst drew his attention.

"I need to retrieve my creation here if you don't mind? I can't imagine she's too happy encased in that ice on the 5th Floor Glacier." Draconis's face went flat, then paled. "Uh . . . you don't think she'll try to kill me when I get there do you? Could you come with me?"

Momonga's jaw dropped open to an audible clack. Not that Draconis could blame him. He nodded and the two teleported to the 5th Floor of Nazarick.

* * *

Arriving at the Glacier level, the two men noted Cocytus standing before the ice structure keeping Draconis's first created NPC. Cocytus bowed to the them and took a step back.

"Cocytus. I thank you for your diligence and loyalty."

"LORD DRACONIS. IT IS AN HONOR TO SEE YOU RETURN TO NAZARICK. HAVE YOU COME TO SEE LADY ESDEATH?"

Draconis nodded and bowed to Momonga.

"I have come to release Esdeath from her stasis. This new situation has called my own home's safety into question and as such, need her power to reinforce my domain. In lieu of this I would reward you for keeping her company. State what you would desire Cocytus, I would reward thee."

Cocytus went to one knee.

"MY LORD, SERVING THE SUPREME ONES IS THIS ONE'S GREATEST PRIVILEGE. I COULD NOT ASK FOR ANYTHING MORE."

Both Momonga and Draconis nodded in understanding, but glanced at each other. Rewarding good service was normal, so what could they do so that they themselves didn't feel awkward.

"Very well Cocytus. But keep in mind that should you require something of me in the future and I have the ability to assist you, do not hesitate to contact me."

"YOU HONOR ME WITH SUCH A PRIVILIGE."

Draconis approached the clear, crystalline ice. Placing a hand on the ice before him, he whispered quietly.

"I'm sorry for leaving you for so long. I need your help now, and hope that you have it in your heart to aide me. Esdeath, I release you from your confinement."

Cocytus watched in fascination as the ice cracked and fissured. The ice sloughed away to released the light, teal haired woman within. Her cream white and black cuffed uniform flow as the coat tails settled behind her. Letting loose a sigh, a light mist of frost escaped. Ice blue eyes, clear as glass sparkled at him. She smiled genially at him and he felt relief was over him. Her hair rippled a bit as she bowed before them.

"Master, I gladly answer your call and there is nothing to apologize for you always returned to visit me. Cocytus was good company, and loyal. I only ask forgiveness for I know little of what is currently going on."

Draconis nodded in both understanding and gratitude. Turning to Momonga, he bowed once more.

"Thank you Momonga. I will take my leave and report on my own findings after a while. Until then, take care. We shall reconvene anon. Akame! Esdeath! On me."

Akame emerged from her leige's shadow like a wraith. Esdeath gave her a look, but nodded in greeting. Akame returned the gesture as Draconis waved once to his peer.

[ _Greater Teleportation_ ]

Once the three had disappeared, Momonga could not help but feel a bit of loneliness again. Though the harshest of his emotions quickly came under the limiter's effects, he mentally smiled.

 _At least I'm not alone here. Though he is right, we are a long distance away, so things like_ [ _Message_ ] _could be risky. Hmm . . . I think it's time to do some recon of my own . . ._

* * *

 **Draconis's Lair**

Arriving back at the Lair, Esdeath looked over Akame with a smirk.

"You look like you've gotten stronger Akame. Ready for that duel yet?"

"Only if our Lord permits it. You know you are a battle maniac."

They all laughed, but Draconis hardened his expression. He needed to nip this in the bud now. Especially since he made them that way. He felt entirely responsible for their aggressive rivalry that bordered on death obsession.

"Firstly, Esdeath. Akame and Kurome both are invaluable and like all the others of the Lair, are precious to me. You two are not allowed a duel to the death under any circumstances. Also, I fully expect you two to get along and work together smoothly when the situation calls for it. Understood?"

Both women nodded and affirmed their acceptance of the order.

"Also, Akame, I will need you and Kurome doing some investigating of the surrounding area with Luserina independently of me. I will be taking Cecilia and Esdeath with me for the time being. That being said, I'm going to retire for a bit."

They both nodded again and Draconis left to retire to his resting chambers. Esdeath sighed and shrugged her shoulders at Akame.

"Well my rival, one day perhaps, but the master is right. Mind enlightening me to what's going on here?"

Akame nodded as her stomach growled loudly enough to scare off bears. Esdeath laugh good natured at Akame's plight until her own stomach did the same. Then it was Akame's turn to find some amusement at her rival's plight, though she smiled deviously rather than laugh out loud.

Draconis entered into his bedchamber and sighed heavily.

 _Being thrown into your favorite game world . . . what an experience, though this is just starting it's already hectic. Still, it's not without it's merits. Seeing the NPC's interacting like regular people is definitely rewarding considering all the work I put into each of their lives. Hrmm . . . man . . . I've gotten pretty tired suddenly. Guess I'll get some shuteye and pick this up tomorrow. Haste normally ends up with something going FUBAR. I'll report in to everyone once I figure out some things. For now? Recharging would be wisest._

Falling onto the plush bed, Draconis promptly faded into dreamland.

* * *

 **Late afternoon the next day . . .**

 _No one thought to wake me up? Then again I probably needed that. First decent night's sleep without having to wake to an alarm at before god forsaken dawn._

He had cleaned his armor and change of clothes with his magic before washing up and dawning them again. He silently wished magic worked like that back in the real world, but shook his head. After grabbing lunch from the magical artifact [ _Eternal Feast's Horn_ ] that he had set up in his chambers, he headed back to the audience chambers.

"My Lord. We have urgent news you may be inclined to take attention to."

Chronos's immediate address upon his return to the audience chamber took Draconis by surprise. Samael and Cecilia were also present. There was also a large rippling sphere of water that levitated in the center of the chamber showing what seemed to be the village to the southeast of their location in mountains.

He knew of Chronos's ability to scry on locations and share what he saw with a group, but seeing it like this was impressive. Whistling a bit in admiration, he walked up to the sphere and nodded. Everything was in real time, so he could see villagers, or at least he thought they were villagers, running away from something.

 _A village raid? Bandits . . . no, those are heteromorphic beings . . . beastmen?_

* * *

 **Tildeus Village**

Beastmen were coming.

They could see the clouds of dirt and dust thrown up by their hungry stampede. A few of the men who could fight readied themselves, but knew in the depths of their souls that they'd never see the next day. The Queen couldn't send help and they were too far from the capital for reinforcements. Frightening tales of other cities larger than their own village pillaged and the inhabitants used as food.

Women were used and abused as toys before being eaten. Death was a mercy that for all too many tragic women, came too late following their ravaged abuse. Children were used as desserts, their soft, young flesh and bones driving the beast men to fight each other for the most select choices. Men who could fight and tried to found themselves torn asunder and despite the vicious deaths, were the most merciful compared to the torture and defilement that awaited the women and children.

Seeing the near horde level number of beastmen charging toward them, many families hugged each other in terror and resignation.

Lilina hugged her mother and rushed to the basement of their storehouse. She knew why her mother didn't come with her and she was terrified to think of what would happen, but she was a good girl. Following the plan that they put together after hearing reports of three cities in their kingdom falling to beastmen, she pulled open a cask of vinegar and soaked herself with it. The smell was so potent she nearly vomited, but rubbed it into her clothing and then climbed into a large clay vase they had for rice storage and dug her way as deep as she could into the grains before topping the vase with a lid that had small air holes poked through the wood.

She began to close her eyes and pray when a tapping on the lid startled her to opening them. She tried, but failed to stifle a scared gasp. Her little heart pounded in her chest and she began to tear up. She hadn't heard a thing. The tapping on the lid repeated and a soft, kind voice filled her ears.

"Little girl? I'm here to help you, but only if you want it. Do you want my help?"

It didn't sound like a beastman . . . they didn't speak elegantly or softly like this lady outside the jar did. Popping the lid, she peeked out to see the most beautiful clear blue eyes she had ever witnessed. A gleaming white smile spread across the woman's face as the girl opened the lid.

"There you are! You're very good to follow your parents words despite your fear and my Lord has taken it upon himself to help you and your village. Do you need help climbing out?"

The girl nodded shyly and gentle hands lifted her from the jar with ease. Grains of rice fell everywhere as she was set on her feet. Awe spread across her face. This lady was beautiful. Long, flowing teal hair that was obviously taken care of fell to her knees. She wore thigh high black heeled boots of high quality leather with golden clasps. A cream white uniform she couldn't recognize gave her and elegant, yet authoritative appearance. Her hat matched the clothing. At her hip was a weapon nearly as rare as mythical katana from the south; a rapier.

The beautiful woman crouched in front of her and wiped stray rice away from her shoulders and out of her hair with care that only her mother could come close too. Finally finding her voice, she spoke in innocent desperation.

"Please save my Momma and Papa!" The confident nod and smirk that she got as an answer made Lilina's heart soar.

Outside the little girl's home, her father held a crude hoe against a bear beastman, the others behind him laughed at his pathetic display. One of them munched on a human leg, blood drippled down its mane like a gritty smoothie. At the front door to their modest home, his wife stood in grim resignation, but she remained steadfast. They had promised to face their deaths with the faith that the gods would ease their pain in doing so.

"Muahahah! Look at these two! They not run! They not run! Kill him I will! Eat her I will. No one else. I claim!"

The others around him growled, roared, and spat, but said nothing. He was the strongest of their group in the raiding band. Of course that did not mean they couldn't watch though. A few of the men were left alive to toy with and the women and children were being rounded up in the square to ration out later.

"I'll die before I let you touch her! You're no different than rabid dogs! What kind of husband . . . of man would I be to abandon her! You kill and slaughter without a care! Monsters!"

He yelled and charged at the beastman nearly two and a half times his size. His wife grit her teeth and buried clenched fists in her skirts. She knew what would happen but she couldn't look away from the man she loved. The hoe came down and shattered on the shoulder at the collarbone area of his target. He didn't stop however and thrust the splintered haft at the eyes of the leader of the raiders. A clawed hand grabbed his arm, stopping his thrust cold.

The beastman lifted him with little effort and slammed him into the ground like a flail. Blood flew from his shattered nose and broken jaw. Teeth flew about and he hacked blood as his ribs broke and punctured internal organs. His left knee shattered, his leg bent at a grotesque angle. His wife shrieked in agony seeing her love being murdered in front of her. Tears streamed from her eyes as she held her hands over her mouth in horror.

"Hahahaaah! Puny human is trash! I will eat . . . eh?!"

All the laughing beastmen openly mocking the couple grew silent at the door that opened behind the traumatized wife. A little girl hardly ten summers stepped out with a determined look on her face that didn't match her age. Tears and horror flashed across her face as she saw her father on the ground, bloody and mangled. It only lasted for an instant before it contorted to anger that her mother had never seen on her sweet child's face before.

"Get away from Papa!"

"A youngling! We is lucky! Tender ones . . . juicy!"

The leader's exultations fell short when a gargling sound made them turn to the source. One of the pack, an apeman fell dead. A shortspear of pure ice stuck out of his neck. Blood and spittle scattered about as he choked on the bile and crimson vitae. All of them looked back at the house in confusion and rage, then promptly took a step back.

"You should listen to the little girl . . . animal."

A woman . . . no . . . an Ice Maiden stepped out of the house to the stunned mother's widening eyes. The little girl cheered unabashed. Eyes even colder than the aura they could feel radiating from her seemed to pierce their souls.

"[ _Diamond Storm_ ]!" The woman spread her arms out to her sides and the beastmen panicked as shards of ice formed out of thin air around her. The glittering shards promised one thing: death. Slashing her hands across herself in a 'x' pattern, the gleaming ice projectiles shot forward seeking blood. The leader froze in place as dozens of cold death dealing projectiles slaughtered his entire group.

The woman grinned like a predator that knew of its superiority as she slowly made her way toward him. Her right hand now held a weapon that made him shudder. The rapier was pitch black and glowed with dark crimson runes. Her sudden halt confused him, but he wasn't that stupid, at her look of slight surprise he charged, swinging his claws at her face.

* * *

 **Village Square**

The gathered villagers and prisoners of the beastmen gawked at the sight before them. A lone man in armor that seemed to embody the definition of elegance stood before everyone with a stern, angered countenance like a storm. The leader of all of the beastmen gathered guffawed at him, puffing his chest out to make him look bigger. He was a silverback apeman. At least three times as strong as an average apeman and a natural pack alpha of a raiding group. His hide could resist swords of steel and shatter iron weapons with ease. Even some enchanted weapons struggled against him and arrows were right out.

"You are one, we are many! Even one against one we are superior to you!"

The young man cracked his neck and gestured with one hand.

"Come at me then."

Roaring in anger and rage, he pointed to one of his lieutenants.

"Kill him!"

The beastman who approached him was an apeman with a crude, but huge axe. The newcomer merely watched him approach with hard eyes. The axe swung, but the result beggared belief. As the weapon made contact with its intended target, the weapon shattered, splinters of wood and metal flew in all directions. The man in the armor didn't even flinch.

"What?!"

All the splinters and shards settled to the earth and the man turned just his head to face his assailant.

"Is that all you are?" The anger in the man's voice carried through all the beastmen present.

"[ _Sonic Lance_ ]."

The man pointed at the apeman and suddenly the heteromorph's entire middle and lower back burst out of his body. A ripple of air like a horizontal column shot through him and down the dirt road, blood and gore splattered down it. The apeman's body now had a cylindrical tunnel through his chest cavity. His heart dangled into the hole like a macabre dream catcher. The corpse fell the dirt in a sickening, meaty pile.

"Hm? Too powerful? Well now, that answers one question . . . how about the next?"

A magic caster in armor?! That made no sense to anyone present. What kind of spell could fell an apeman like that in one go with no effort?

"I am Quo Lang! Magic caster, you stop or we kill all humans here!"

The beastmen surrounding everyone grinned with glee and people screamed in despair.

"I think not. [ _Blade Barrier_ ]!"

The four beastmen around the trapped villagers flew to pieces and left everyone stunned. As the violence died down again, a veritable fusillade of swords floating in a circle around the villagers. The circle of lethal metal was three swords deep and five swords high with each sword staggered like a lattice. Each row of blades rotated in a steady, slow circle. The outer most ring went clockwise, the second ring was counterclockwise and the final layer was like its outer most sibling. All of the villagers and beastmen had never seen such magic. The fact that the beastmen around them had been literally sliced into chunks and pieces when steel shattered against hides and supernaturally tough fur could only mean one thing.

"Magic swords?! All of them?"

A man who was the tutor of education, regardless of it being basic, uttered in awe. He couldn't count them all with them circling around, but there had to be no less than twenty. Who was this hero who came out of the blue?

Quo Lang gripped his greatclub with strength that would crush a man's head. What was this human male?! Magic the likes not seen before slaughtered his underlings like paper. Not to mention the pressure! The sheer magnitude of pressure this man brought to bear had him struggling to not fall to his knees! This killing intent was like the head chieftains of the beastman nation. Yet he remained stoic, the anger didn't reach his face, but his eyes . . .

"No!"

Their eyes locked and Quo Lang shuddered visibly. Vertical pupils lie within prismatic . . . _prismatic_ eyes! Multi colored eyes that seemed to shift and melt into a flow of colors that never remained still. Only one thing echoed in his mind: inhuman monster!

Turning, he dropped his weapon and began to run. This stunned the other beastmen, who tried to run as well seeing the strongest among them retreating from this powerful magic caster. Said man clicked his tongue in disdain.

"At the end they can't even face down death? Disgusting . . . lesser men have done better than this rabble. [ _Twin Magic: Chain Lightning_ ]!"

Pointing a finger at the retreating Quo Lang, two bolts of blinding violet lightning lanced out, spearing the beastman in the back. A cry of anguish was drowned out by the roar of thunder and smell of cooking flesh as the bolt then lanced from him to each of his raiders in sequence. All of the beastmen were caught by the magical onslaught and fell to the ground smoking husks.

The man that the people now saw as their savior wore an expression of concern and contemplation for a moment before turning to them all with compassionate eyes and bowing to them with elegance that betokened high nobility and the swords around them dissipated in sparkling motes of light.

* * *

 **Lilina's Home**

Lilina and her mother could only stare in awe as the teal haired woman held the bearman's claws at bay with a single hand as she lazily glared at her attacker.

"Are you done healing him? He looked pretty bad off Cecilia."

The little girl gasped at the sight of another beautiful woman with emerald green hair that flowed like feathers. She was adorned in lavender and purple robes and white long gloves and knee high boots. Her father lay before her with a bewildered and shocked expression. Blood still stained his clothing and face, but his leg was no longer twisted into a sickening angle. Likewise, his arm was fine too. His mother collapsed to her knees.

"A healer? Adventurers?!"

The crest that the two women wore didn't match anything that their kingdom's neighbors; The Slane Theocracy bore. It wasn't one of the Scriptures, and they definitely weren't of the Baharuth Empire. Re-Estize? No, that was too far away and a violation of the treaties that they held with the Empire. Independent?

"It's nothing I can't handle, though I'd rather not use to many of the more potent spells at my disposal."

The cream white and black adorned woman nodded and then glared coldly at her opponent.

"Good. Now then, you're coming with me. Cecilia, I'll leave the family's care to you."

"I understand. Our Liege is at the town square handling the main group of raiders."

The woman nodded silently with a grin and then picked her opponent up after encasing him up to his neck in ice. The bearman shrieked.

"Mercy! Mercy!"

"Not for me to decide, though I'd rather just kill you and spare myself the trouble."

Her voice faded as she grew more distant. Lilina and her mother ran to her father's side.

"Darling!" "Papa!"

They hugged him fiercely as the emerald haired lady gave them some space. Tears of relief and joy ran down all of their faces as the physical contact of hugging reassured them that it wasn't a dream. They were all alive.

After calming a bit, Lilina and her mother turned to the woman they had heard was named Cecilia and bowed deeply in gratitude. The happy smile that they received in turn was like a balm to the heart and mind.

"Thank you. We are most grateful to you adventurers! We do not have much, but please you are welcome at our home at any time!"

"Thank you pretty lady for saving Papa, Mama, and me!"

The woman before them laughed with a happy expression on her face. Kneeling in front of Lilina, she patted the girl's head. This got a giggle out of her.

"You're very welcome. I am Cecilia von Houten, a knight mage of Avalon and vassal of Lord Draconis Brightblade. May I have your names?"

They stood stunned. A noble adventurer? She was a noble and a vassal to a higher authority? Lilina's parents bowed.

"Forgive us Lady Cecilia! We did not know you were of nobility. I am Katherine and my husband is Mikael."

A calming hand on her shoulder from Cecilia was the last thing the panicking mother expected.

"It is alright Katherine. You did not know so how can I be offended? From everything I witnessed before my comrade stepped in, I honestly wish all nobility could act with such dignity and valor. Mr. Mikael, you showed more grit and honor than most supposed nobility and knights ever could given your position. There is hope for humanity yet."

Cecilia stunned them by bowing with a curtsy. It was immaculate, her form, posture. Where ever this Avalon country was, they were certain than if more of the nobility were like her, then things in the Dragon Kingdom would be very different in the war against the beastman nation. Mikael scratched the back of his head suddenly feeling very awkward and embarrassed receiving such praise from such an exemplary lady.

"Can you stand Mr. Mikael? I must return to my liege's side, but he would want me to ensure you are alright on your own before I do."

He shakily got to his feet. Tottering a bit, but with his wife's help, he felt nothing but a bit dizzy. The healing magic was surreal. He'd never received such treatment before, but he could now understand why it cost so much for temples to treat them with it. Cecilia gestured for them to follow her toward the village square and so they did. Part of them was genuinely curious as to who in the world this wonderful woman could swear fealty to.

* * *

 **Village Square**

Draconis looked around at all the dead beastmen that had fallen to his [ _Twin Magic: Chain Lightening_ ] in mild disgust and concern.

 _Seriously? Tier VI_ [Chain Lightning] _without_ [Maximize] _turned them to ashes? If that was the case then the Tier III_ [Fireball] _would have been more than enough. Hell, my racial skills would be overkill here. Probably a good thing I didn't use them . . . though that calls more questions up. What is this world's magic level on average?_

Draconis may not have been a pure caster class, but his racial benefits allowed him to progress as a caster for however many racial levels he took as if they were a caster class. It was completely overpowered by many YGGDRASIL player standards, but when the majority found out about the utterly brutal experience penalties, only a small minority of players actually manned up to play the race. As a result, he was literally only part of 2.4% of the entire player base. Granted that was still several hundred players, but by comparison running into a player like his race-wise was a shot in the dark.

He turned to see the awed villagers before him. Giving them all a compassionate smile, he bowed. As he came up from it, he noticed Esdeath approaching with what appeared to be a bearman frozen to its neck. It was screaming for mercy and judging from Esdeath's annoyed face, he would probably have to make this quick before she just killed it to make the area quiet again.

"My Lord, one survivor of the raiding party as you requested, though I honestly don't know what we can gain from him."

"Set him down facing me." She did so and the villagers stared in shock. She had carried the frozen bearman, a heteropmorph twice her size, one handed and just dropped it in front of their savior like it was a milk jug.

"Your name bearman."

"K-kk Krong." There was a palpable fear in the beastman that shocked those witnessing this spectacle. Fear from a beastman? Then again, with the power that the man before them had displayed and the feat of strength the woman who called him her lord had showed, could anyone blame it?

"How many more of you are in the area? You can't be the only band of raiders. I'm not that naive."

"We. We one of three. We strongest one."

"Strongest? Or just largest numbered?"

"Both." The man raised a brow in suspicion of the beastman's words. A harsh glare made the bearman shriek in fear. "We have strongest members and biggest numbers! But leader of all three smartest of all us."

 _There's the kicker . . . Alright, I'll have to pay this smartest one a visit._

"Esdeath." His voice hardened and some of the villagers cringed at the name that left his lips. All of them tensed when she responded as they realized that was her name.

"Yes my Lord?"

"I've gained the information I needed from this one. End this menace."

He turned away as Esdeath gave a dark laugh of mocking before fully encasing Krong in ice. His terrified screams cut off halfway through and them she punched the ice with a mighty haymaker. The frozen prison shattered, sending Krong all over the village square. Oddly enough, the villagers didn't wail in shock or disgust, but nodded in approval.

 _A reaction like that to seeing a sentient being regardless of origin being killed in such a fashion means that these beastmen raids aren't anything new and the savagery must be truly heinous if they approve of such a death on another._

"Master Mage."

A more learned man approached him in front of the group of village survivors that remained a bit anxious. Giving him a disarming smile and beckoning him to come closer, Draconis hoped that he could get some information about the surrounding area. Though he did feel a pang of wanting to help them recover, he had other things on his plate and they looked like they could recover on their own well enough.

"Master Mage, I wish to thank you on behalf of all of us of Tildeus Village for coming to our aide."

"I felt it right to stop them. However I wish to receive compensation." He lifted his hand to forestall worried cries. "My group is woefully new to the area and are in need of information. Anything you could give us about our surroundings would be more than enough compensation. As Cecilia, Esdeath, and I appeared rather suddenly, I fear we were the victims of a [ _Teleport_ ] gone awry."

The man nodded in understanding. Turning to the gathered villagers, he spoke in a clear, calm voice.

"I will speak with our gracious saviors in place of our late village chief. Please go about the removal and burial of the dead and we will hold a proper ceremony later in the evening."

"Please, come this way Sir . . .?"

"Draconis Brightblade. But your name?"

"Oh! My sincere apologies, Aarik Miklotov."

"I see. One moment Aarik. Cecilia approaches with what I assume to be more from your village."

The emerald haired knight mage of Draconis's entourage approached followed by Mikael and his family. Little Lilina beamed at Cecilia as she followed.

"My Lord, I've completed my rounds and these are the last few survivors Esdeath and I found not at the village square."

He nodded once and smiled at the girl who was giving his retainer hero worship eyes. Chuckling at her innocence despite the situation she and her family just went through, he approached them. She appeared to be the youngest of the villagers.

"I'm glad Cecilia was able to help you. Looks like you've been through quite the ordeal."

The husband and wife bowed deeply. Seeing her parents bowing with their eyes closed, Lilina quickly imitated them, though her eyes still looked up at him. He could feel his smile only broaden more as he waved at her. She gasped, realizing she'd been caught peeking and shifted behind her mother's dress.

"Hahah! A shy one eh? No problems with that though."

"Lord Brightblade, sire. Thank you so much for coming to our aide."

The mother's soft, near reverent tones made Aarik uneasy. Being well versed in old world history and fantasy settings, Draconis could make a reasonable guess as to why they addressed him as such.

"Ah, Cecilia used her full name to introduce herself to you and mentioned her allegiances did she?" He gave the Lair's tactical mind a look and she had enough grace to fidget with the toe of her boot in the dirt. She gave him an apologetic look. Shaking his head with a sigh, he nodded in affirmation. "I am Draconis Brightblade; a Holy Knight. Yes, she is a noble of a well standing house. Yes, she is one of my retainers. However, my own title is not to any country, but to a cause. Please don't feel the need to stand on ceremony if it's not called for. There is a time and place for the stuffy procedures and this is not one of them."

They looked at him in surprise and admiration. So few nobles even bothered to address the common folk much less treat them so well. His introduction as a Holy Knight made them wonder if he was from the far off Roble Holy Kingdom to the west.

As they looked him over, he certainly looked the part. His breastplate, greaves, gauntlets, and pauldrons were shining in the sun like polished silver, yet they had never seen such a metal that sparkled so. Even in the setting sunlight it shone like glittering motes. Under the armor he wore a long surcoat that had tail sections that draped elegantly behind him down to just above his ankles. Said coat was white and royal blue with a magenta interior lining that had white embroidering at the tails that were lined in golden thread. The frontal portion of the surcoat just below his waist was black with gold trimming in triangular lines. The armor was engraved with angelic feather like motifs and his helm was open faced with pure snow white plumage on both sides that seemed like wings. At the moment he had it tucked in his left arm. A dark royal blue cloak wrapped regally about his neck and shoulders was held in place by straps and clasps around the pauldrons and collar of his surcoat. It had no embroidery, but was a singular piece that flowed like water.

The sword by his side was sheathed in a well kept scabbard. The hilt was solid black and dark as night with sapphires, one in the pommel and two in either end of the cross guard. They did not notice any shield but was sure that if he did have one it would be an immaculate piece of work. The jewelry that adorned his neck and ears were made of . . . was that platinum?! The gemstones withing the necklace scintillated with all the colors of the rainbow in each individual gem. The earrings in both his ears held rubies. It was all more wealth than they'd ever see again in their lifetimes.

What made it all the more like he was a savior from the gods was that as an adventurer they assumed him to be, they all had to be enchanted to some level. Yet as they looked him over some more, they could find no adventurer's plate. Not copper, iron, silver, gold, or any of the other ranks.

He turned to face Cecilia.

"Please help Esdeath in assisting the villagers in clearing the beastmen corpses and in interring their lost. I will be talking with Aarik here in lieu of the late village chief. Any questions?"

"None sire."

"Very well. Aarik? If you would lead the way please."

Draconis motioned for him to lead the way and Aarik took a moment to regain his bearings in light of his candid nature.

"Oh . . . OH! Yes, of course. Right this way."

 _I hope we can get some relevant information about this new world we're in. I hate being info blind. Helping these people out will help us figure out what our power levels are compared to those around us. If they are what I think they are this will be a huge boon in the long run._

Draconis entered the building and took a seat at the crude wooden table that Aarik had set chairs in front of. The two men sat across from each other and the information exchange began.

* * *

 **Tadah! Ok. So here we go with some character information. Like the LN's I'll be doing a Profile section, but only a single character per chapter.**

 **Also for those of you who play Final Fantasy XIV Online. Much of Draconis Brightblade's equipment comes from PLD class armor and gear. The set he wears in this chapter? Take a guess! Answered in the next chapter's end notes.**

 **Cecilia von Houten is actually Cecilia from Fire Emblem Binding Blade. I always did love FE's artwork and hers is one of my favorites. Props to anyone who manages to guess the other FE character that cameo'd in this chapter.**

 **Without further ado, Character Profile time.**

* * *

 **Draconis Brightblade**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** The Exile; Thirteenth Knight of the Round; The Queen's Shadow; Emissary of the World Dragon

 **Residence:** The Lair (personal dungeon HQ), Private Suite of Avalon's Crystal Castle

 **Alignment:** Good (+350 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Dragon = 15 lvs; Dragon Lord = 10 lvs; Ancient Wyrm = 5 lvs; Dragon Ascendant = 5 lvs; Scion of the Divine Dragon = 5 lvs

 **Class Levels:** Knight = 15 lvs; Cleric = 10 lvs; Guardian = 10 lvs; High Cleric = 5 lvs.; Holy Knight = 5 lvs; Knight Most Heavenly = 5 lvs; Eldritch Spellblade = 5 lvs; Ascendant Knight of the World Dragon = 5 lvs

 **Total Levels: 100** [Racial Levels 40/Class Levels 60]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 95/150

 **MP:** 50/70

 **Physical Attack:** 80/100

 **Physical Defense:** 100/120

 **Dexterity:** 55/30

 **Magical Attack:** 50/70

 **Magical Defense:** 75/85

 **Total Resistances:** 90/90

 **Special:** 120/120

 **The dual numbers on his status are representative of his base human form and his true dragon form. He rarely uses it mainly because he sees himself as a literal Colossal sized target. And he's a true Dragon, not like freaking Skyrim one arrow dragon . . . like Dragon's Dogma Ur Dragon dragon! Tough as hell and absolutely a terror if he goes all out, but in YGGDRASIL with level 100's in groups he doesn't like doing it due to the fact that alone he'll die pretty badly. But if you aren't in a large group and he unleashes it . . . well you guys will see it eventually. XP**

 **Review and take your guesses!**


	3. Chapter 2: Loyalty and Awareness

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Chapter 2: Loyalty and Awareness**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Kugane Maruyama owns Overlord and is licensed by Yen Press. Please support the novel releases.**

 **That said, this chapter hit me like a ton of bricks with lead cores. Maybe it turned out to be overly deep. Perhaps it is a bit much, but it reinforces events to come. So for me, its a lot of set up that pays off later. It's an issue that I constantly asked myself and my friends who also enjoy Overlord concerning the NPCs.**

 **Draconis and his wife along with Gareth are rather large buffs of animation and games and philosophy so they took their RP elements for NPCs a bit overboard with what ifs built into the backgrounds they wrote. This is just one of them. Responses to reviews to come at the end of the chapter.**

 **Draconis wears FFXIV's Antiquated Creed PLD set with a winged helm instead of the jeweled head piece. Now . . . on with the show!**

* * *

Luserina arrived back from her patrol outside the surrounding areas of The Lair and sighed heavily. Her long cinnamon brunette hair held in a ponytail swayed with the breeze that blew into the entrance. Crystal blue eyes with motes of green were clear and bright. She wore equipment befitting an elven ranger and then some. She was a High Elf of Asgard.

Created by their liege Draconis, she knew that she and her peers had been blessed with a life that lead up to their allegiance to him. Some of them had been created earlier than others, but their lives had been enriched greatly by being mentored in some manner by him. He was more than just their liege, but a teacher, mentor, comrade, savior, and other such honorifics they felt he had earned from them. One thing was unquestionable, and that was his concern for their well being.

He had worry over their injuries and wounds whenever they fought to defend their home from raiders. He had shown concern when any of them had died in the line of duty and resurrected them afterward. They all knew the price of raising the dead and that he didn't give it a second thought before doing so for them was humbling. Likewise, though he may have thought he was hiding it, Cecilia and the twin sisters Akame and Kurome . . . even Esdeath had heard and told them - Esdeath more recently with her return - about his fears and doubts. His efforts to strengthen The Lair to ensure that they wouldn't die again. It only endeared him to all of them even more.

She remembered the previous night when Esdeath arrived at The Lair's banquet hall.

* * *

 **Last night after Draconis retired . . .**

All of the guardians were gathered around the massive table. The banquet hall was large enough to fit eighty people with plenty of room to spare. The table was elegant and exotic. Each diner sitting in a chair at the table had a least five feet between them when sitting across from each other. The massive table itself formed a large circle with a five foot wide gap at its head. In the middle of the massive circle lay a smaller round table fifteen feet across. The gap between the inner table's outer edge and chairs and the surrounding circular table's inner chairs was a distance of fifteen feet. Overall from one side of the outer table to the other the distance was around fifty-five feet in diameter.

Special communication magic enchanted the room and made it so that talking across the long distances of the seats was not an issue. If you weren't a part of a specific conversation it merely sounded like a busy cafeteria's background noise, but if you were a part of a conversation regardless of where the talkers were seated, it was as if they were right beside you. The spell was called [ _Whispers of the Tavern_ ] and it was a Tier X spell due to its extraordinary complexity.

Draconis's seat was at the head of this inner table. Whenever he dined with them, they could all converse with each other and him without having to turn heads or in their seats.

The tables themselves were crafted from fairy iron wood and burnished with genie's fire. The table tops were of emerald ice crystal that was semi translucent. The sheen of the precious material reminded them of a sea green ocean's waves. The chairs were also made of the same wood and had plush cushions build into the seats and backrests. Five grand chandeliers hanged from the ceiling and glowed with a soft ambient light. They were actually gemstone elementals and could adjust their glow to fit the room. The elementals themselves were relatively weak at level 40, but they seemed happy to be of service and even made for decent conversation if you could understand Terran and were eating by yourself.

They also made midnight snacking impossible to do without getting caught considering teleporting inside the final two floors of The Lair was taboo unless it was an emergency and that the only way to the larders and kitchen was through the banquet hall. They didn't sleep, so they knew everyone going in and out of the kitchens and larder. It made for an embarrassing moment when they'd blurt out the name of the last person who got a late night craving.

The walls of the chamber were covered in large drapes of royal purple with golden threaded tassels of equal length. The walls themselves were clean light white stone with stained oak trimming along the floor moldings. Built in a giant rectangular shape, the room was enormous to fit the massive table. A hundred feet long and eighty-five feet wide with the ceiling climbing to twenty-five feet high it was hardly expected in a dragon's lair, but Draconis was not the typical dragon or lord for that matter.

It was their liege that they were all discussing after the last of the plates and food had been cleared away from the table by the maids and butlers that enjoyed employ under Draconis. They were all denizens from Avalon who were honored to serve their Queen's guardian dragon and beloved. However, being separated from the Queendom ensured that the staff would not be rotating out any time soon. Accommodations were swiftly cleared and assigned to the staff by Cecilia since she was of one of it's noble houses.

"So what you are all saying is that we have all been pulled from our homelands to a new celestial body Chronos?"

Esdeath asked with a concerned frown marring her pale features. The seraphim sat to her left several chairs over in his own seat. He nodded and his six wings fluttered a bit in frustration.

"Indeed Lady Esdeath. What manner of magic could do such a thing is a frightening concept. We are fortunate though that you were brought here by Lord Draconis. Avalon and it's Queen in addition to three other comrades of Draconis were also warped here, but where exactly we are unsure of."

"Not to sound rude or condescending Chronos-dono, but why have you not divined the Crystal Castle's location and reported it to our liege?"

Hazuki spoke up from the right of Esdeath. She was a kitsune and her ears and tails twitched and shifted in slight annoyance. Always having been a straight and to the point woman, she was blunt, but not arrogant. For all of her social graces, or lack of patience for it, she was an elegant master of the katana and naginata. A nine-tailed kitsune, she was extremely swift and accurate and a hard target to pin down. Her amber eyes stared at her angelic peer.

"Because Lady Hazuki, Avalon has its defenses at maximum I bet. Even as an ally, I would trip them and even if I did not, we know nothing of the surrounding powers. If we assume that their is someone or something observing this new world via similar methods, would we not be risking being found and targeted?"

The entire assembled group of NPCs nodded.

"Ah, my apologies Chronos-dono. I meant no offense." As Chronos smiled and accepted her apology, Samael spoke. His voice was low and deep; like a growl, but held no malice. It was just a result of his dragon blooded nature.

"That is well and good. Esdeath, I am glad to have you back with us in the fold." The others around the table nodded in agreement. "I have a question for you. Were you mistreated while in Ainz Ooal Gown's custody? Did they harm you?"

The room became still. You could hear a pin drop and Esdeath knew that her next words would irrevocably affect their view of Ainz Ooal Gown and Nazarick despite whatever their liege felt. Her eyes closed and she crossed her arms over her chest as she thought of how best to phrase her response.

Recalling the time she spent in her icy isolation, she hadn't felt pain. Cocytus had been there and though she couldn't speak with him, he did speak to her regardless of her lack of response. Draconis had come to visit on many occasions and spoken to her. At times he had poured his heart out with the stress of his position and the expectations of those who worked under him and above him. She hadn't understood everything that had been laid before her, but she could remember one thing about it all beyond any doubt. He was haunted by lost comrades and lost innocent civilians. He was enraged at the lack of compassion the world had become flooded with. He was sorrowful for his failings, yet steeled to do what had to be done.

She came to a startling revelation with each and every outpouring of heart. He wasn't perfect, he made mistakes and was fearful of losing those who trusted him at a mere word from him as a commanding officer. He craved a counterbalance, someone to question his plans and decisions respectfully with the concern of their lives at its heart. Even concern for his enemies! It was humbling to learn. He had even asked her as she lay within the ice if she would be angry for being a confessional for him! Not that she knew what that entailed, but Esdeath had been surprised when he would admit to her concerns that he didn't even tell his wife the Queen of Avalon for fear of causing her unneeded worry. Then she remembered the most stark of his philosophies that had made its way to her more than anything he'd said from his visits.

" _Esdeath. Loyalty . . . what is loyalty? Loyalty isn't blind trust and just sticking with a person or ideal for the sake of faithfulness. True loyalty is the faithfulness to those people, those ideals, even unto making them aware of what you think is right and what you think is wrong. Never be afraid to question if you are unsure, or doubt the nature of something. Do it respectfully and sincerely. A blade left unsheathed rusts and turns brittle, and power is best when unused and waiting. The best choices aren't always the ideal ones."_

Little did either of them know, but that moment had changed something fundamentally in her soul. She sighed and opened her eyes and spoke.

"No, they did not Commander Samael. Though I was encased in ice, the element is comforting to me, so it was not an issue. Lord Draconis came to visit frequently. Cocytus of Nazarick is an honorable guard and spoke to me on occasion even though I could not properly respond. True, many of its denizens are more malicious and some even outright evil, but if they aren't bothered by intruders they mainly act as we are now. Some are even quite the follower of justice or honor code."

That gave them much food for thought. Chronos frowned.

"Even so . . . those demons and monsters have . . ."

"Chronos. Do you forget Lady Akame, Lady Kurome, and Lady Esdeath's origins? Were we not all given the opportunity by our liege to serve?"

Tod's voice cut through anything the seraphim was about to say about the heteromorphic races of Nazarick. Eyes fell to the three women in the room with them. Akame and Kurome were Archfiends and Esdeath was a Yuki-Onna. Inherently evil beings, but fighting for a more just cause. Their evil was more along the lines of having no qualms killing those who deserved it, or taking a more "closed fist" policy than their peers.

Cecilia also spoke up.

"Indeed Sir Chronos. Evil and Good can both be harmful. Killing in and of itself is evil regardless of who dies or why. Goodness and mercy can be even more insidious than abject evil. It can render its recipients lax or arrogant and when they fall and take others down with them who are innocent who's fault is it for truth? Theirs? Or the ones who couldn't let them learn with tough lessons?"

Chronos's angelic instinct wanted to stand and refute her and his fellow peers, but then he remembered that it was true. His own celestial nature and his blood resonated that truth, a horrid one, but undeniable. Good people had indeed done hideous things without realizing, or even vindicating themselves. Evil people had done unexpected good deeds and never been recognized, merely overshadowed by the negatives. And the harshest truth he knew . . . demons were fallen angels and he was no exception and not immune to falling as well.

 _Is this what our liege meant by, "All things in moderation? That a person's true colors are not always apparent?_

He laughed heartily as his peers looked on in surprise. He smiled broadly and nodded. This is what it meant to have friendly discord and be true comrades.

"Indeed, you speak truth Cecilia! Thank you Tod for stopping me from saying something rather short sighted. My apologies Lady Akame, Kurome, and Esdeath. You are our liege's precious allies and disciples. I was remiss. Though not all are as mature, unfortunately."

They all nodded in agreement. It was a sad state of affairs. Not all different races had their views or beliefs. Naturally there were things that they still disagreed one and argued over, but the lessons that Draconis had instilled in them were the reason why they were able to debate and converse rather than go at each other's throats. Part of them wondered if it was due to their liege's long lived draconic lifespan that enabled him to view the world like this.

They knew that he was thousands of years old. How many empires and kingdoms had he seen come and go? Even Luserina, one of the older of the guardians at 473 years old didn't compare in experience.

Cecilia and Tod - though human - had broken the limit of aging via their potent magic and the sacred contract they had forged with Draconis and his dragon heritage. Though by comparison to their peers they were still quite young. Samael was the eldest at 924 years, followed by Chronos at 580 years via sacred ritual of angelic creation. He was followed by Luserina, then Hazuki at 200. When Cecilia and Tod joined their ranks they had been in their teens. Now they were 65 and 79 respectively. Akame, Kurome, were the youngest at 19 and 16 being born of a fell ritual the opposite of Chronos. Esdeath was 24 born during one of the harshest winters of her nomadic tribes life. She had passed away in the fierce colds and her bitterness and resentment had been so furious that she had transformed into a vengeful Yuki-Onna.

Now that she thought about it . . . she asked before her mind could decide whether or not it was wise.

"We know that Lord Draconis created us, but what does that mean about our memories? Our lives up to now?"

That made everyone stop and think.

 _Uh-oh. Did I just set off a_ [Fireball] _?_

Cecilia answered first, her voice a bit dry, but firm.

"I believe that even if my that be the case and my memories were crafted, I think that the hardships and challenges were to better me. It doesn't change the fact that we are living beside our liege. Perhaps he wanted company outside his own peers and wife?"

Chronos frowned, what did this mean for him as a celestial? Though he did recall reading something about mortals having been given more authority and standing than angels somewhere. He wasn't too certain. Perhaps it was a rare thing to be gifted, the power to create. It wasn't as if he had the power to level a continent or an entire population in a single breath like a god could. Though the life he had lived thus far had been immensely fulfilling. When he really thought about it and all the others out there like some of his liege's peers, it really could have been worse.

"I find myself in agreement with Lady Cecilia. Our liege has been generous and kind to us. What kind of retainers would we be to question such a good life thus far? We are fortunate that it was him and not some others."

"Personally? I can see Cecilia-dono's reasoning, but I feel a bit manipulated."

The group turned to the kitsune Blatt Meister stunned. Hazuki continued.

"Were we created on a whim for his entertainment? What did was the point of my life? My skills? Chronos-dono, I also understand your words and that is definitely a truth. It could have been much worse. I just want to know why."

Samael nodded sagely at his fellow warrior.

"I find myself in Hazuki's camp actually. For similar reasons as well."

Schwarzer Tod frowned. His brooding noticed by Cecilia, drew her concern.

"Tod?" Her voice prompted all eyes to turn his way.

"I have no issue with it, I think we can all come to the similar conclusion on the issue, but I've thought of something. What of those guardians of Avalon? What of Ainz Ooal Gown? Do they think on this level as we do? Were their creators as conscientious? Lord Draconis sees us as trusted advisors and comrades, not just retainers or subjects, but what about them?"

The group paled a bit. They experiences thus far had shaped Draconis to them as a powerful and experienced liege, but not perfect. Such illusions generally shattered pretty violently when broken. It was something that they all had learned at some point in their past experience.

Esdeath shook her head. She had seen that blind loyalty in Cocytus, though she had a feeling that it was more due to his simple warrior nature and code of conduct rather than extreme fanaticism . . . at least she hoped so. Akame stood and spoke to everyone.

"I think Kurome and I can vouch for our liege as we've been through thick and thin with him leading us. I always felt like a part of him wanted company that didn't weigh him down with fake smiles and unreasonable expectations. I think that even with Queen Artorias and his peers he still feels a bit lonely at times. He looks at Kurome and I like . . ." she actually stuttered a bit and blushed faintly. It made them second glance at her. She never blushed. "Like we are his children, like family. Perhaps that is want he wanted with all of us. A family."

No one could say anything in response. They knew that she didn't necessarily mean biological, but more like a closely knit group; like a pack.

"I think that we should lay this topic to rest and save our decisions for later based purely on how he treats us now. But I don't think that will be an issue."

Cecilia quietly spoke with confident resolve. The group nodded in agreement. Whatever was to come, it didn't change the fact that they were all comrades with the same liege. The actions taken from here on out would be their own, and they would see just what their liege could do. Though Esdeath had another concern. Should she tell him about their discussion? Would he retreat mentally? She really did not know. It would be a decision she would have to make later, things had to be done know for the sake of mutual survival. One thing was certain for everyone, no one wanted anything tragic happening to themselves.

* * *

 **Back to Present**

Luserina had been quiet during the whole existential crisis talk. As far as she was concerned, powers that be did what they wanted to. If Draconis was one of these powers, then she was thankful for his generally easy going attitude, yet firm moral conviction and steeled honor code. It also went without saying that unlike many tales they had heard over time about such entities, many simply left them, Draconis took an active part in their lives.

She wasn't gong to sweat the details, she was alive now and free spirited.

 _That still doesn't change the fact that this patrol is getting monotonous . . ._

"Phweee!"

"UWAAHHH!" Luserina yelped and jumped as a pair of lips blew air over her tapered ear.

Kurome laughed as she jumped back from the elf. Akame stood to the side hiding her grin behind a hand, though her mirth was clearly visible in her crimson eyes. Glaring at the sisters, she pointed at the shorter haired, black eyed sibling first. Her other hand rested over the offended ear and her cheeks were tinted pink in embarrassment.

"Argh! Kurome! You know I hate it when someone does that! My ears are sensitive and delicate."

"You looked so serious Rina! Did last night's talk rattle that much?" Kurome smiled at her as the laughter died down to more of an amused giggle. Kurome was pretty bubbly when not "on the job" as Draconis liked to call it.

"Not really. I mean as our creator, he cares for us and still interacts and treats us as people. That's a lot more than others can say. We're blessed in that regard so I have no qualms. I had a hard life, but if it means I learned and grew . . . he didn't abandon me. That means a lot more than I can say."

The two sisters nodded. As they proceeded back into the depth of their home, they talked idle chit chat about what they had seen and learned about their surrounding area. Eventually they came upon Samael, who stood in front of Hazuki.

Both were in their usual combat attire. Samael was a half shadow dragon and a Reaver. A two handed weapon class that focused on offensive mob destruction. He wielded a massive scythe and was a frightening open combatant. Hazuki was his opposite in combat doctrine, focused on devastating one-on-one duels.

Samael's armor was red and gold and black. A combination of breastplate and scale mail, he was the most heavily armored out of everyone save for Draconis himself. The man stood just as tall as their liege as well at 187 cm. Ashen gray hair framed an angular face that was homely and belied his dragon blood. His eyes were pitch black with crimson pupils. The cloak he wore around his armor wrapped loosely around his neck and collar held in place by pins and stays in his shoulder plates and draped down to just around mid thigh. The gauntlets and greaves were clawed and the knee sections were spiked for a vicious close quarters knee strike that could kill if it hit its target in the right locations.

In contrast Hazuki wore no armor at all. At least it appeared that way. A dark chocolate brown hakama was covered in the front by an apron like tabard with a woven crest of her school of kenjutsu. It was edged in gold with it's colors collapsing inward of crimson, jade, and then her mon. She wore uwabaki at the moment, but would trade out her inner footwear for jika-tabi with reinforced shin guards of scarletite whenever she left the interior of their home.

Her arms were wrapped to her upper bicep with magically reinforced weave of white cloth over form fitting black gloves that barely peaked out of the top of the wrappings. An equally black, obsidianite weave uwagi that fit to her torso was covered in a light armor wrap that matched the crimson of the waste tabard she wore. Her katana was held on her person with her uwa-obi along with her item pouch and her hair was worn in a ponytail as well. She only wielded her singular katana and no other weapon.

The two looked like they were about to travel somewhere, but no one else had received any other orders yet.

"Hazuki-san! Commander! What are you doing?"

"We have received a message from Cecilia that we are to meet with our liege at the village he left to assist."

"All of us?"

"No, Chronos and The Bunny are remaining behind. Hazuki and I are going to ask our liege about our purpose here."

The three women tensed a bit, but understood the mental struggle that the their fellow guardians felt.

"Are you prepared to travel now or shall Hazuki and I wait for you?"

Having just returned, Luserina really wanted to relax a bit, but she knew that waiting tended to make Hazuki a bit stir crazy. Not wanting the elegant sword mistress she nodded.

"I'm ready to go now." Akame and Kurome nodded their agreement and Samael wave his hand.

[ _Gate_ ]

* * *

 **Tildeus Village Aarik's House - Living Room**

Cecilia and Draconis sat at the simple table Aarik had provided them with. She both stared at the crude . . . well . . .

"Map doesn't even match what this is my lord . . ." Cecilia sighed as she held a hand to her forehead in frustration. Esdeath merely glared at the offending piece of parchment before them as she stood to his left. Their liege wasn't faring much better as he rested his forehead on the tabletop. His hands remained in his lap.

Aarik had left the house to give them some time as he was needed helping some of the villagers with the burial of the dead. It was during this time that Draconis had given Cecilia the go ahead to call the guardians save for Chronos and The Bunny to their location. Barely lifting his head from the table, he looked at the "map" again and sighed.

What seemed to be water stains or oil stains counted as a vaguely loose representation of topography. Rough and gaudy hash lines in seemingly random locations counted as mountains. A single dark line supposedly marked a river, but Aarik had told them that the distance was not accurate and some sections were an entire day's travel off. It was an absolute soldier and officer's nightmare.

"I'm inclined to agree with you Cecilia. Which is unfortunate because an inaccurate map is going to make things difficult. We needed information and Aarik has been enlightening." He gestured at a few gold coins from YGGDRASIL they had scattered about on the table with a money changer's scale and weights. Three books lay on the rough wood as well. One of them lay open with script that normally he couldn't read. He was glad for Cecilia's[ _Comprehend Languages_ ] spell.

From the books he had garnered that they were in the Draconic Kingdom. The irony made him chuckle. To the north past the mountains they found themselves in, lie the Baharuth Empire lead by a young and highly intelligent ruler moniker-ed "The Bloody Emperor" for his drastic reforms concerning the incompetence in the nobility. To the northeast of in the mountains lay the Wyvern Rider domain. That had intrigued him greatly, but he filed it away for later.

To the west was a nation known as the Slane Theocracy. That had immediately made him extremely wary. With Aarik outside, he had Esdeath watch the door for his return as he spoke with Cecilia. Both women grew concerned at his troubled expression.

"A theocracy . . . that's not good."

"That is a nation ruled by the priests of a religion who hold their sovereign god as the ruler of civil affairs yes?"

Draconis buried his face into his hands as he nodded suddenly exhausted. His voice came out muffled and frustrated. "Yes . . ."

"Should that not make governing its people easier when they hold a similar belief?"

"It very much can, but it's been proven throughout history to be an extremely double edged blade. The Crusades of Christianity come to mind and they weren't a full true theocracy. Religious rule can make people utterly blind to all but their version of 'good' and 'evil'. Right and wrong are how they alone interpret it and even good people are persecuted for simply not agreeing with it. Even so far as executions and false 'witch hunts'. You can have thousands of 'good jobs' but one 'honest mistake' will erase them all."

The nodded as they came to comprehend what he was worried about. Cecilia spoke up as she looked at the book that lay open on the table.

"Did the notes mention their beliefs?"

"It summarized them. Anyone who isn't human, and I mean pure human is below the existence of humankind. They persecute and eradicate demi-humans and their settlements. They worship the Six Great Gods . . . whoever those were."

Before any other comments or conjectures could be made a [ _Gate_ ] opened and the summoned guardians stepped through. Draconis lifted an eyebrow along with Cecilia when Samael and Hazuki entered alongside the sisters and Luserina.

"Yes Samael? Is something the matter?"

When Samael clenched his jaw and everyone in the room tensed and began to fidget uneasily, Draconis knew something was off. Turning to give his guardian Commander his complete attention, he put on the face that he had done countless times as an officer. Esdeath glared at Samael with a look that screamed, "Don't you dare! Not now!"

"I'm listening Samael. Speak your piece. It is obvious that it is uncomfortable or quite grave if everyone is suddenly this tense. I will not hold it against you. If it is something I have done then I will do what I can to help or rectify it and make amends."

The dragon blooded commander's hands clenched into fists. Looking at Draconis straight in his eyes, all he could see was solemn expectation, no hate or anger for confronting him like other lords may when a vassal or retainer spoke up against them.

"Draconis, I want to know what you intended when you created us!" He raised his voice in frustration at the situation, at himself for questioning his lord, at the circumstances of the world they now found themselves trapped in. He'd never felt this before and it infuriated him! "We have memories of our lives, yet know that you created us! Some of us have gone through harsh trials and tribulations! Some of us have lost friends and loved ones! Why?! Was it a whim to you? Were we just to be servants to be saved for your own enjoyment? You treat us so well, but in light of the last meeting we guardians had . . . I find myself . . . I find myself confused and to be honest . . . betrayed."

Draconis slowly looked around the room at each of the guardians present. Akame and Kurome hadn't changed as they gazed and him with confidence. Esdeath also held a similar aura, but looked at him with a gaze that seemed to apologize and comfort him. Cecilia looked away as if in shame and embarrassment. Luserina shrugged as she gave him a pitying look that seemed somewhat apologetic. Hazuki merely locked her eyes with his and he could feel her searching his feelings through their eye contact.

He surprised them all by smiling broadly.

 _How many times have I imagined them becoming true living people with self awareness and issues like normal people? How often had I imagined this very situation? It's like a dream that I never wish to awaken from . . . a fantasy become reality. Still . . . this is a very serious concern for them and I would be a total bastard to play their emotions and trust. And I don't want to be alone._

"Samael, you all spoke about the meaning behind your existences? The reasons why I - as your creator - infused you all with memories and lives before meeting me?"

He nodded firmly in response. Hazuki also nodded fervently.

"Can you take me at my word or do you require more?"

His question stunned them. Samael looked at him as if he had just ordered him to kill one of his fellow guardians just for the heck of it. Draconis sighed and nodded to himself.

"Your silence is my answer. Cecilia." The mage knight of Avalon snapped out of her stupor. "Cast [ _Zone of Truth_ ] the target is: me."

The whole group was floored. Esdeath, realizing what was about to happen, locked the door she stood at and froze it completely over. She knew that the walls were just thick enough to stop normal conversations from permeating through, but she didn't trust the door itself.

"My lord, it isn't going to work on you . . ."

"I can willingly submit to the spell Cecilia, please . . ." he looked to her earnestly. She found herself swallowing a lump in her throat. There was a pain in his eyes that she could see, a desperation that she somehow knew . . . the desire to do the right and just thing by them.

 _How foolish we have been to question his love and care for us . . . to doubt the sincerity and concern for our lives . . . what leader has eyes like that and not care about those he leads? Forgive me my lord._

"[ _Zone of Truth_ ]."

A series of golden glyphs and magic circles appeared throughout the room and Draconis slumped a tad in his seat. His voice took on a bit of a monotone timbre.

"When I created each and every one of you, I had a vision in my mind. My life had been filled with greed and corruption. Innocent and honest, hardworking people slaved day in and day out just to barely scrap by with something resembling a 'life', but it is too much for many and they die sad deaths from overwork and exhaustion. Though I did not have it as bad off, I saw countless comrades and friends succumb to the merciless wheel of the world. In creating you I desired to make a circle of comrades that were actually rewarded, recognized and praised for overcoming adversity! To see all of you succeed no matter the odds and work together regardless of your race and origin."

"What of those of us who lost family and friends?"

"All of us regardless of origin will lose family and friends. My father and mother were murdered by my brother. In my rage I killed him for it and was alone."

Hazuki gaped at the admission. He wore such a haunted expression that she realized that at least she had known that her family had not died by one of their own. She couldn't imagine killing her sibling, though she died by banditry soon afterward. Still, he was their creator!

"You could have made our lives without such hardships and still had us turn out to be your retainers some other way!"

"You are right . . . I could have. Yet I didn't. There is a saying, 'you don't know what is taken for granted until it is gone.' There is another one as well. 'Nothing easy is worthwhile'."

What did he mean by that? They all looked at each other as they pondered that. Draconis continued.

"If I had brought you into the world without such hardships, would you have the resolves to ask me these questions? Would you have just blindly thrown yourselves against whatever I pleased without a care? Blind loyalty and perfection is flawed in my belief. I want people to question my reasons at times. I need someone, anyone to counter balance me for my sake. I have made so many mistakes and more than I want to admit have cost me comrades lives. Caused their families sorrow and suffering in a world that already has too much just for being alive. I envy you in that regard."

Esdeath wore an expression of consternation. She'd heard all of his fears and heartbreak about his life and work, and concerns about his marriage to the queen. Envy for them was a new one for her.

"Envy us?! You made us go through so much!" Hazuki strained.

"I never put you through something that I have not done so myself and never did I put you through something that would utterly break you. Like metals must go through the flames of a forge to create something new, so do we. I am no exception to this truth. Hazuki, your loss of family was a reflection of the sorrow, anger, and frustrations that I went through. It happened to you when you were nineteen. I was six."

She reeled at the thought of it. Six years of age and witnessing your brother kill your parents and then killing him as well? All she could do was repeat such a horrible thing in her mind as she stared at the floor. Draconis turned to Samael.

"I know why you feel betrayed. Your imprisonment for an act of passion, though yours wasn't violence but of misplaced love, or rather, lust. Young and impulsive and impressionable. Imprisoned at eight and treated like dirt for 'reaching above your station' before I came along and offered you a chance at getting back on your feet and living a good life, free of the tedious courts and nobles."

Samael's fists clenched tighter. His voice came out a low growl.

"Let me guess, another reflection of your own life?"

"No. I became a child hit man."

Everyone gaped. This was nothing like anything they had expected. Even Samael gawked at the prospect. By this point he had honestly thought that he was going to get a story about imprisonment and rehabilitation, but not going the dark path of a paid child assassin.

"My rage at the brother who killed our parents rendered me sterilized to the concept of family and loyalty. Anyone who wouldn't remain true . . . any hypocrite that dared act so self righteous I cut down, gunned down, ended or ruined for a price. They weren't clean and I very nearly was killed myself on multiple occasions. I even garnered an underworld nickname: The Sadist."

Even Samael shivered a bit at that moniker. One could only imagine heinous things with a name like that.

"I was never caught officially, but I was recruited. I got underworld training and became a deniable factor in the military that took out trash. Then the War started . . . It was an honorless, ruthless conflict between twenty different nations and all over things that could have been discussed over the table. Five years of war and 59 million dead. A third of that number were civilians who had nothing to do with it."

"Fifty-nine m-million?!" He only quietly nodded.

"It taught me something very clear. Religion means little to nothing and a cold comfort and humankind is the greatest monster of them all. The world suffers and instead of helping those who need it, they fight over a plot of land and what mineral is in the dirt, then lie about who started it and scapegoat a person and ruin his life, his family life and future. This is why I don't believe that good and evil are as black and white as a person makes it out to be. The war made me realize that I'd been a foolish, immature brat with anger issues. I resolved to change myself, my wife helped a lot with that."

Samael grimaced. A war with that many dead? What kind of hell did Draconis live through and survive? None of them had been subjected to such a thing. He couldn't even begin to imagine it! When he mentally stepped back and compared the two, there wasn't even a comparison that he could make to keep his anger going. As he talked, his dragon eyes and sense could see the pain, the fury, the sadness. The sincerity was palpable even without [ _Zone of Truth_ ].

He looked to Esdeath who also seemed a bit stunned at the revelation of such a war. He walked over to her and bowed respectfully. The action shook them out of their stupor.

"Lady Esdeath. It seems you were right. I can't imagine such a life, but submitting to the spell of Lady Cecilia is very telling. Even with the spell in place my senses and blood scream that everything he has confessed despite what I want to think otherwise is true and sincere. I guess this too is something he desired in creating us."

She nodded and gestured to their liege . . . no creator and friend.

"I think you have something you need to say to Lord Draconis."

He walked back to stand before their lord and knelt on one knee. Bowing his head low, he spoke reverently.

"My liege. Draconis Brightblade. I better understand what you were trying to accomplish. We believed you had done it for entertainment and a whim, but we did not stop to think of what you have lived through. I am sorry."

Hazuki also bowed low before him. Sitting seiza style and placing her forehead to the floor, she spoke without looking up.

"Draconis-sama. I was short sighted and did not think of what you yourself have lived through either. I beg your forgiveness."

Cecilia dismissed the spell and Draconis regained some of his brighter demeanor, though it was not all there. She did feel a distinct sense of relief and peace wash off of his aura now though. Like a burden had been lifted from him. He felt much more at ease.

 _I think that we've actually helped him in some way by going through this. Is this something that he'd been desiring all this time? Could we be . . .?_

Draconis looked at her with a smiled filled with relief and . . . was that gratitude? He said nothing, but nodded slowly and she understood.

 _We are . . . We really are so precious to him. It's like he wanted us to grow and break this barrier that kept him from us. We've forged a new bond with him. I see . . . we're more than retainers to him. We're another family to him. We represent a better world than the one he lived through despite the hardship._

She smiled and nodded in return. Things were clearer, and even though some questions might have remained, they were unneeded. They didn't need to know everything and all the why's. He cared for them and wanted more than anything to have a true circle of acceptance despite the differences.

"There is nothing to forgive here Samael, Hazuki. Rather, I am proud that you stood up to me and asked the questions. Never forget that and don't lose that either. As I said before, it keeps me in check for my darker inner demons. It is what keeps me sane. It is what keeps the monster inside me at bay."

Akame and Kurome knew what it was he spoke of. The reason he kept a revulsion of evil just for kicks and for evil's sake was that it benefited no one in the long term. Everyone and everything suffered and it was a miserable existence. Even though it was tempered as steel when he went to battle or dealt with enemies or misguided allies, he was mindful to keep his head and reason. They personally had witnessed a loss of his restraint and he had ordered them away from him. It had been bloody and brutal. Completely out of character for him was an understatement.

The two guardians rose and bowed again to him.

"You have our thanks. I'm sorry from so grossly deviating from the meeting's actual purpose."

The group nodded and the tension of the room eased greatly. Esdeath unfroze the door and opened it to reveal Aarik in a near panic state.

"Oh, Sir Draconis! I found the door frozen and . . . who are all these people? Allies?"

Draconis turned in the chair and smiled. Never had they ever seen such a brilliant smile on his face till now.

"More than allies Aarik. My family away from my family."

The whole group nodded as one. They had reach a new bond of trust and camaraderie that couldn't be broken. A family that didn't care about blood or status and was truer than the traditional definition of the word in every way.

* * *

 **Well. That's the chapter. Too deep? Appropriate? Seeing differences in Ainz and the Nazarick NPCs to how Draconis is with his? How will this affect the encounters to come? Who knows! Onto responding to some reviewers!**

 **XXX1994:** It seems that way doesn't it? Well, war changes people. Also, he'll still have his panic moments like Ainz does, but it's less frequent. That's what the NPCs are for . . . :P I've read all of the LN and am waiting for Volume 13 to hit early 2018. Though I tend to share some reader's sentiments about the last few books. Everyone loves a steamroll every it's started to get stale. Where's the guy or girl that can put him on edge and in his place? That's where this story popped into my head from. Thanks for your support in this endeavor of mine! o/

 **To Guest and RyuujiVantek:** Thanks for the support! I'm glad you are enjoying it!

 **Prinnington:** Alright, I'm going to assume your name is a call out to Disgaea and those Prinny bombs . . . Anyway Dood, it will, but Ainz and them will be making appearances as certain things change from the LN. It takes a few chapters to get situated and he's no really featured at the moment b/c the story for him pretty much remains the same until a certain point, where mutual concerns bypass personal judgments and ideals. I would be most appreciative of your support until then and beyond!

 **MadDan90:** Similar indeed :P If it ain't broke . . . Anyway, I'm glad this meets your standard. I too have read some pretty awful stuff and really exemplary stuff. I've always enjoyed writing and tiny mistakes tend to get forgive in place of solid narrative and good development. Thank you for your support. I look forward to seeing more reviews from you in the future installments.

 **UndeadLord22:** Lolz . . . how could you have not read this sooner? It's only three days old at tops at the time of your review? Hahaha! Looking over my shoulder as I'm writing it or something? Glad you find it worth your time!

 **PervySageChuck:** Thanks for catching that typo. It has been corrected. Good on you for seeing that and letting me know. 50,000 word chapters?! LMAO. That's a whole dang book in and of itself! Joking aside, thanks for the review and notification. It's appreciated. Stay in touch.

 **Alrighty everyone! More action in the next chapter. Limbs and blood will fly as they hunt down the leader of this beastmen raiding group. Review!**


	4. Chapter 3 Hunter Become Hunted

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official books! Akame Ga Kill's characters are also the property of their respective creators and publishers. Other tributes to other games and series that will may appear in this story's lifespan are the property of their respective creators and licensed publishers.**

 **Also, I thank all reviewers for their responses and the time they spend reading my work. Responses and other such details at the end of the chapter.**

 **Speaking of which, this is a long one. Yay! Fight heavy scenes and changes in perspective tend to drive up the word count :P. Also because I completely zoned out with the review responses last chapter I forgot to include a character profile so this time around you guys get two of them! Enjoy and read and review.**

 **Chapter 3: Hunter Becomes Hunted**

* * *

It was strange. Very, very strange. He did not understand it. Where was his third party of raiders? Jin Lu Quo growled at the air. The food that they had rounded up was no to be touched until their den's Alpha had his selection of the lot. It was annoying and infuriating at the same time, but going against an Alpha was death walking. The men and women and children that lay in the pen holding pits whimpered and wailed and even though several of the raiding pack wanted to eat them or play with them and then eat them, he fiercely enforced his power over the other members of the raiding group.

The Alpha was not to be questioned and he could tell somehow if you'd eaten food before he got his pick of a raid. Jin wasn't about to get his neck ripped out over another den mate's stupidity. Neither were his seconds. He stationed his four most trusted around the pens and even though it wasn't as tasty, sheep and cattle and their chickens served their purpose. Even the horseflesh wasn't terrible in his opinion.

Truth was, he considered an irregular among his tribesmen. He was smart and came to the realization when facing adventurers from a young age that if the weapons that these humans employed so often could actually harm them, they'd be slaughtered. The thing called tactics and strategy had caught them off guard many times, but when their immensely powerful hides and fur trumped swords and spears it bred confidence that he felt was a bit overblown. Likewise their claws and fangs for many of their number were stronger than armor. At least towns guard and normal watchmen. But adventurers proved considerably tougher, and in combination with their weapons that were magical and could rend their flesh, an adventurer was a dangerous thing to come across.

As such he had thought of trying to learn basic tactics and something of strategy, but most often, just rushing in with fevered snarls and warcries in combination with their sheer numbers was enough. This kingdom was falling and the masses of his kindred beastmen could feel it.

Due to this, most of them didn't consider many of ideas and called him a coward and irregular because he bothered to learn 'human' ways. The only reason he had this position was that the Alpha had seen that his learning tactics could tell them where concentrations of food were.

They had been sent out that morning and should have been back by now, but they had not returned yet.

 _If they ate any of the food in that village the Alpha will rip my arms off. Where are those four that I sent out to see what happened?!_

* * *

 **Tildeus Village outskirts**

* * *

The four beastmen who watched the village from a small lopping hillcrest couldn't believe what they were seeing. A pyre made of their fellow raiders burned to the sky in dark gray smoke. The smell of burning fur and flesh hit their nostrils and it made them furious.

"How did they kill our brothers?!"

"Grrr . . . adventurers maybe?"

Adventurers, banes of their invasion, but few in number. They hit them with traps and ambushes and didn't fight in open combat unless they had the clear advantage. Cowards in essence. Beastmen faced down their prey in the open and feasted on the defeated despair as they killed their food to eat.

"Look!"

The four beastmen could see the villagers at a different pyre and their was a small group of better dressed individuals. A woman with long, feathery green hair appeared to have her head bowed in prayer. Beside her was a woman with even longer teal blue hair with her back facing them. Two shorter women with black hair like nighttime stood beside a man with blazing crimson hair. They growled in anger. Adventurers?

"Filthy adventurers! Killed our brethren! We kill them in the night, then take food!"

Two of them nodded in agreement for night would be upon them all shortly. The final did as well, but furrowed his snout. Something felt very wrong with this. Night was approaching and this would be the best time to find out about these new adventurers. Something in the air, maybe the scent he caught, told him these adventurers were not what they seemed. They slinked back down the hillock and waiting for night to fully envelope the village. None of them noticed that someone overlooking the pyres from a rooftop had seen them.

* * *

 **Tildeus Village**

* * *

 _Is that so Luserina? Hmm . . . I will handle these four with Esdeath. Watch the perimeters with Akame, Kurome, and Cecilia. Tell all the villagers to remain in the church for the night._

"My liege, would it be permissible to hunt down the main raid party with them after you take care of these four?"

 _Hmm . . . I'll think on it while we wait for these four. I want to make sure that one of them gets away._

She caught on to what he was implying. She smiled like a hunter that found the best prey of the day. She personally didn't eat meat often, mainly enjoying fish and vegetables and fruits. Poultry was preferred but she couldn't imagine herself consuming humanoids or sentient lifeforms. It sickened her and the others to find out from Aarik that these beastmen ate humans, much less children! She hefted her weapon over her shoulder and double checked everything she had with her.

"I understand Lord Draconis. I'll be ready whenever you need me."

She stealthily crept down the rooftop and dropped to the ground. She pulled up the hood of her cloak and went about searching for Cecilia. Coming to the village square, she found her comrade. The emerald haired tactician sat on a crate as she spoke with a few of the villagers. Little Lilina's family was among the number.

"I see. That is very enlightening. Thank you so much for sharing."

"It's nothing for someone who came to our rescue."

Cecilia smiled at Luserina as she approached. Returning her smile with a firm nod, she bowed slightly at the gathered villagers.

"Our lord wished to inform all of you that we need you all to gather in the church for the night. I spied what looked like a group of beastmen scouts. They were probably sent to check on the ones we saved you from."

The villagers murmured among each other in fear and concern. A second group? Cecilia's expression grew serious even as she stood from her seat elegantly.

"Everyone, please calm yourselves. I have no doubt that Lord Draconis is making plans to handle whatever else they send here. Please follow my comrade's instructions. Having everyone at the church makes things easier for us to defend you."

The group of villagers still wore worried expressions, but nodded and quickly dispersed to spread the news. Luserina smiled lightly. At least they weren't going into full fledged panic. Cecilia tapped the magical tome in the sling on her hip. A wisp of veridian energy flowed around her fingers. A part of her trembled. She forgot at times that the kind, compassionate, and wise woman before her was also a fierce and passionate magic caster that had been knighted by her Queen for her tactical and strategic aptitude. Her magic was also merciless on the battlefield.

"You have a scary look in your eyes Cecilia." The grandmaster troubadour looked her with a laugh.

"Your eyes are also quite keen right now. How many were there?"

"Four, but our liege wants you, Akame, Kurome and I guarding the villagers at the church. I'll be taking to the church's bell tower to provide watch. Akame and Kurome should cover the front and back entrances and you should probably be inside with them. It seems they have taken quite the liking to you."

Her magic fizzled out and Cecilia chuckled at bit.

"I guess I tend to make bonds of trust easily. I will do as you suggest, but if one of them sneaks in I'll show no mercy."

"I don't doubt you. Still, I think that unlikely. It's almost impossible to sneak up on the sisters."

On that, they could agree. If you got close to the sisters and they didn't turn around or greet you, it wasn't that you managed to sneak up on them, but they just didn't see you as a threat. That or they were playing along. In fact the only time someone could surprise them was when they were all back at The Lair and safe. It was the only time when they would drop their guard. For all their seemingly uncaring attitudes, they cared deeply for their friends and comrades.

Akame and Kurome materialized from the shadows of an awning. The two sisters had forgone their hooded cloaks. The short pleated skirts and sleeveless button up obsidianite vests and blouses were a style neither of the other two women really understood. The longcoats of pure white that they both wore traveled down to their mid calves and just barely concealed their katanas.

"Kurome told me my cloak would scare the children." the younger sister nodded with her hair bobbing as she did so. Akame pouted a bit as her sister patted her on the shoulder.

"I'm not using mine because I don't want big sis to feel singled out."

They laughed at their dynamic. Sometimes they were so odd, it was amusing. They had considered asking why they had left their cloaks, but figured that the siblings had expected the question anyway and beat them to the point.

"That's a wise idea Kurome. Good thinking. Shall we help make sure no one gets left behind?"

They all agreed and dispersed to carry out their orders. It would be another hour before night fell upon everyone. They wanted to be sure that no one was left behind.

* * *

 **Aarik's House**

* * *

The hour had passed faster than they felt it should. Esdeath stood beside Draconis as Aarik gave final instructions to the villagers. The man turned to them with a frown.

"Yet again we turn to you for aide. Truly we cannot repay this kindness."

"We'll talk some more after this Aarik. I still have questions and information to clarify. Hurry on to the church. Nightfall has begun. Remember what I told you Aarik. No torches or lanterns."

The man nodded and left, jogging to catch up to his neighbors. Esdeath smirked.

"Wanting to do some nighttime hunting of the hunters?"

He grunted and scratched the back of his head in annoyed frustration.

"Remember, leave one alive and let him go. You can enjoy this hunt Esdeath."

She smirked viciously. When was the last time she got to cut loose a bit? Of course it wouldn't do to cause collateral damage, but she did need to destroy things to enjoy what was about to happen. Looking to her lord, she bowed.

"Very well. What should I do if I encounter more than one at a time?"

He put a hand to his chin in thought.

"Use your Danger Aura III. If one of them seems like it realizes that you are the superior one and looks like it wants or is thinking about fleeing, let it go. Kill the others. You have the east half and southern section of Tildeus."

Esdeath gave him a toothy smile and salute before leaping to the roof of Aarik's home and making her way on rooftops to her assigned area of operations. Her enthusiasm made him wonder, but he shrugged. He had given her specific instructions.

Casually walked towards the western half of the village, he closed his eyes and focused on his surroundings. [ _Blindsense_ ]; an ability gained by his dragon racial features normally allowed him to detect and feel anything within line of sight. Making it close to impossible to get the jump on dragon racial players without lots of obstacles. Granted, it wasn't full proof. Just knowing where creatures, monsters, and other players were in general was a huge advantage. Another limitation was that its range was a bit limited when it came to spell ranges and gunners or other physical ranged classes. However he wasn't too terribly worried about things tonight.

He had told Aarik no torches on purpose. He would walk the streets and paths of the village in the night's darkness.[ _Darkvision_ ] was another trait handed to dragons and it allowed him to see perfectly fine in darkness, granted it turned his vision black and white without any color recognition whatsoever, but he'd gotten used to it as he had played through the game.

Satisfied that both still worked here in this new world as well, he proceeded to carry out his patrol. Resting his left arms on the hilt of his sword, he strolled casually as if enjoying a Sunday afternoon walk.

 _I should contact Momonga and Artorias after I finish this incident. Hope they're doing alright._

He continued to walk through the dirt streets of the village. Focusing on the task he set for himself, thoughts of his conversation with Aarik resurfaced.

 _I should lend aide to this Queen Draudillon. If she's even a half blooded dragon like Aarik told us, then I can gauge just how powerful I am by a rough comparison . . . The Slane Theocracy is probably going to be a giant pain the ass. Though they might not all believe that demi humans are below them. We'll find out in the future._

He rounded the corner of a merchant stall and caught a flicker of movement. It was extraordinarily brief. Most people would have missed it even if they could see. But Draconis's senses were preternatural now. If had been what he thought was the tip of a furry tail. Hazuki had returned to The Lair with Samael so he knew it wouldn't be her. A beastman that Luserina had spotted. He grinned, his incisors had become more fang like. It was this, his eyes, and -when his gloves and gauntlets were off - his claws were the only thing telegraphing his inhuman nature.

 _Time to play dumb._

"Someone there? It's alright, you can come out."

His ears twitched. The sound of pebbles shifting behind him from around the corner he just rounded told him where this being was. He moved forward, away from the sound and fifteen feet down the street. Making his foot falls deliberately loud and heavy he called out again. As he did so, his [ _Blindsense_ ] alerted him to a creature creeping around the corner before it lunged at him.

"GROOWWWOOOOO!"

The attacking creature had revealed itself. A wolfman, jaws were wide open revealing deadly fangs. In its hand was a jagged looking hatchet that arced down at him. The movements were lithe and Draconis for a split second admired the fluidity of the attack before he threw a punch at the wolfman's face.

His attacker's face went from gleeful to shocked and then unbelieving in an instant before he collided face first into the fist that Draconis threw at him. A pained yelp followed by a body hitting the ground echoed in the night. Hatchet dropped, the wolfman rolled around on the ground clutching his jaw. It wasn't broken somehow, but it hurt like hell. Draconis stood there with an amused grin on his face.

 _I didn't really attack him so much as put my fist in his path and let him fly into it . . . Man that's one for the scrapbook._

"Tell me beastman, what's your leader's name? Answer my questions and I shall be merciful."

* * *

 **POV Change to Wolfman**

* * *

The wolfman got to his feet and glared at the food that dared make a fool of him. How did he accurately guess where to attack him? Then he saw the armor and sword by his side. Even in the dark he could tell how magnificently crafted they were. Then his sense of smell told him something else.

 _Not human? Smells like cinders and precious metals . . . like the air does after lightning strikes . . . of magic._

The man stood nonchalant and looked directly at him.

 _He sees me? Magical vision of some kind?_

He knew this was bad. Adventurers that they had faced had taught them that not all humans were weak. Some were deadly, but their numbers would annihilate them or force them to retreat. There was only one group of those pests that they hadn't been able to take even a single member of. A man with a brilliant shining blade that flashed like lightning. Food had called that one The Fierce Flash. He had heard of that annoying man. He could fight an Alpha with little problem and in one-on-one, had killed several. There was a massive reward for his head.

 _Is this that man? Dangerous! Should retreat._

There had never been a terribly precise description of The Fierce Flash Cerebrate, only that he was a "knight" and "Holy Lord". This adventurer seemed to fit the description. He couldn't compare to his raid leader, much less an Alpha. He knew that if this threat attacked, he'd probably die. When the question that was asked finally dawned on him he saw his opportunity. Even a distracted person no matter how strong could be killed. This was his chance!

"Leader's name is Jin Lu Quo. He is cowardly."

A look of confusion played across the man's face.

"How so? Why would you and the others bother to follow one you name a coward?"

"Den Alpha gave him power. Was told that he knew where to find food due to learning food's tactics and practices. Beastmen have no need of cowardly fighting. We are strong, we are many! Weak human weapons break against our fur and hides!"

A look of realization dawned on the man's face. He nodded in understanding. He closed his eyes as he lifted a hand to his chin in thought.

"I see . . . I see. That enlightens me a bit."

 _NOW!_

He seized his opportunity. It was night! He had closed his eyes! The hatchet swung at the man's neck. The weapon made contact with the vulnerable section of the his target. Then the weapon shattered, the wooden grip splintered everywhere. The metal head of the weapon flew off to his right as it bounced off its intended victim and split in flight into two pieces.

"Wha?!" The wolfman gawked at his broken weapon grip that remained in his hand.

"That was good initiative. But pointless." The man opened his eyes and glared. The wolfman gasped and trembled. The eyes of this man were glowing prismatic colors bright enough to be easily seen from a distance. "Well, you answered my questions. I have one more, but I suspect that only your leader could answer it. I will be merciful. Return to your leader and let him know that I am coming. The hunter is now the hunted."

His eyes seemed to flash.

"What are you waiting for? Get lost!"

The wolfman turned tail and ran as fast as he could. The pressure for this adventurer was too much. He had to tell their leader this development.

 _That Fierce Flash is here! We need our Alpha!_

He didn't see or hear the man's words to the air as he desperate ran from Tildeus.

* * *

 **Drcoanis PoV**

* * *

"Luserina, track him back to his group. Do not engage. Report in via [ _Message_ ]and keep under surveillance until I send you back up. If you are found, you are to withdraw and return."

 _I understand. Heading out._

"Take care."

He rubbed his neck where the hatchet had made contact. Walking over to the split hatchet head, he picked it up and sniffed it. Iron and blood. Tossing it back on the ground, he sighed.

"So they don't even have magic weapons? Supreme Physical Damage Immunity is probably way more than necessary in this situation. Heck, even if someone here was higher than level 75 it probably isn't human . . . that would make even my retainers overwhelming powerful here. My dragon racial skills and passives probably make me so powerful here than I'd be a walking catastrophe."

Draconis's racial levels into his dragon heritage unlocked a veritable tsunami of powerful abilities and skills. It was the reason why dragons in YGGDRASIL were feared and never underestimated. They were tougher than tank classes naturally, shrugged off spells and blades alike, and had frightening presences that hit you with status debuffs and ailments just by standing in their presence. If their physical power wasn't enough, then their magical prowess was just as terrifying. It was one of the leading reasons why Momonga had tried to get him back into their fold once they had reformed the clan into an actual guild; Ainz Ooal Gown.

However, as a lore reader and RP'er, he had turned down the invitation to join the guild. He had however, told him that playing with them was something he would return to doing and acting as a guest. They had come an agreement.

He would return to the game, but remain neutral. Helping when he felt that their goals aligned or that they needed help. However he would also fight them if he felt the circumstances fit. He was of the Good Alignment and many of his powers and skills relied on keeping a positive Karma Score. When he became his unique classes both racially and class-wise, it only reinforced that need.

 _Well, not so much for my rare racial classes, but the job classes certainly rely on it staying positive. I can get a pretty accurate gauge of it based on how my faith based powers work. I'm actually really well balanced for solo play if this was still YGGDRASIL. Though now I'm going to have to keep things to myself in terms of my powers and abilities. Not that I wasn't doing so already._

He doubted that anyone - his allies in Avalon included - even knew about his rare racial or job classes. He hadn't even told his wife what they could do. Granted, they knew he had the True Form, but the last time they had viewed it had been before he had gained the rare racial classes. The unlock conditions were so ludicrous that when he had looked into the conditions for one of them he had literally almost quit the game again. One of his racial unlocks, Dragon Ascendant had required him to devour his entire hoard. Everything he owned . . . all the equipment, money, gems, artifacts, furniture . . . and it had to be a minimum of 20,000,000 gold in value. The kicker? If your hoard was higher than that in value you still had to eat it all, it was all or nothing with a ridiculous minimum value.

At first he thought that the post online had been a troll, but anything related to dragon players and their info was locked down tighter than anyone could imagine due to their powerful natures and the pain of leveling. Normally, death and the 5 level loss was a method of building your character in YGGDRASIL as leveling wasn't too hard, but dragons were so powerful that leveling one was actually made hard by the devs. When that was paired with the 5 level loss, the few players that did play dragons like them had formed an online forum just for them and if you thought the info war about the game was brutal for normal players, dragon players were info nazis that would kill their own mothers to keep it confidential. It had only been his reputation as a player online that had earned the hint at the Dragon Ascendant racial class from another player who had the class already.

When he had done the deed, which had cost him three God Tier pieces in a rare set, and a lot of precious items and money, in addition to several limited edition pieces that he still missed even now. He had received the usual congratulations message of unlocking a class and the summary. When he had read it his eyeballs had popped out of his head and he had fainted. When he had recovered, he had set about raising it to it's max of Level 5 as fast as possible. He loved his True Dragon form, but Dragon Ascendant had morphed it into something spectacularly awesome.

 _Regaining everything to the value I consumed sucked HARD though._ He grimaced as he remembered the reactions his friends had when he was found questing for mere Relic Tier equipment so he could go questing to gain Legendary and new God Tier equipment. Artorias knew that he had done it to get a rare class, but even she had questioned the wisdom in it. That had been a year of gameplay earnings gone in a single moment. When he had to ask his wife to help keep his dungeon afloat as he couldn't pay the upkeep, she had gawked at his loss of wealth for a rare class.

" _That class had better be worth it Draconis."_

"Oh it is my dear." he muttered to himself as he remembered her indignation. She had never asked what the class was or what exactly it did, but she had noticed his sudden dramatic increase in certain stats, especially his HP and Physical Defenses. "But enough reminiscing . . . got a job to finish. I wonder how Esdeath is doing?"

* * *

 **Eastern Area of Tildeus**

* * *

Two of the four beastmen scouts couldn't believe what they were seeing. This icy maiden had appeared before them and laughed when they had threatened her. A dreadful cold seemed to envelope the area. Ice formed on the ground and frost began to nip at their fur. What was this woman?

"What, not going to attack? You can't get to the villagers here without going through me. Not that you will be able to get through me to start with."

They both looked to each other and then back at her. The ice she had glowed with magic and illuminated the area. It was one thing for them to face fighters in armor and wielding swords and shields. But this was magic. Magic casters had always been more trouble than it was worth to smaller groups of beastmen. Large numbers would simply overwhelm the enemy caster and kill them with impunity, but this woman was something different and they did not have the numbers.

Ice magic was something they had never seen either. It was becoming so cold that they actually shivered. Them! Beastmen with heavy, stronger than armor fur. Beastmen who were tougher than humans in every regard physically. What was this woman magic caster? There senses told them that this was no ordinary being. The animal instinct portion of their being screamed danger.

"You aren't coming? I won't use my blade, I promise."

The two beastmen grit their teeth and flexed their claws. Was it worth it? A howl in the distance immediately followed by a yelp of pain made them look toward the western side of the village in surprise and fear as they jumped in surprise.

One of their other pack mates had been stopped? A swift movement caught their attention, but they were not fast enough. This ice wielder had closed the distance between them with a swiftness that they had never seen in a human. She spun around on the heel of her boot before lashing out with a side kick that nailed the boar like demi-human in the chest. The sound of cracking ribs and grinding flesh made the beastman who had not been attacked pale. His partner was sent flying backward and down the street. The boarman skipped and skidded down the street before landing in a heap. There was no motion from him.

Dead? From a single kick?! She slowly lowered her leg from her attack. Her eyes! They were like a predator and he was the prey. He knew that look from their Alpha! Was she a human Alpha? He found himself taking a step backward. Then another . . . and another. Soon he was running for his life.

He knew he could run faster than their food could, those pathetic human snacks were slow, but this . . . thing THING wasn't human! A dreadful presence behind him made his guts grow cold and his body shiver in fright. He didn't dare look back though because doing so would guarantee his death. A eerie giggle right behind his ear made him shriek in terror.

"How cute, you think you can outrun me? You're my prey, and I am a hunter of superlative caliber."

The sound of snapping fingers echoed in his ears before his legs caught on something and he went face first into the dirt. Looking back at his feet, he began to panic. His legs were encased in ice, but were standing upright. But that didn't make any sense as he was face first in dirt. Then he looked again and screamed in abject horror. His legs were indeed upright in ice. His stumps frozen in ice where his momentum and cracked the ice in half and his legs with it. How cold did you have to be to not feel your legs break completely off of your body?

It mattered little as his screams were not from pain; he couldn't feel his legs at all. No he was screaming in terror. What was this nightmare? The woman approached him slowly with a wicked smile on her face. Before she could do anymore, she suddenly halted, a distant look glazed her eyes before she glanced in another direction and nodded firmly.

"I understand. I will finish up here and join you shortly."

Who was she talking to? It didn't make sense. Was it the other adventurers that they had seen? She drew the sword she had.

"My lord just wrapped things up on his end and my friends are done with the last of you four. I was told to make it quick."

The woman raised her sword into the air and swung down. A scream rent the air and was cut off abruptly. Esdeath sighed.

"This was disappointing."

* * *

 **Tildeus Church**

* * *

The bestman didn't know what to make of the sight before him. A girl, barely out of her teens stood before him. The was no way that food could see him from his hiding spot out of the light, yet she steadily stared right at him and never looked away. Her eyes seemed to pierce the darkness and right through his being. Who were these adventurers? They weren't like the food they hunted. These were hunters of monsters . . . no . . . monsters who hunted monsters!

 _This is very bad._

He had heard his fellow pack mate's screams and assumed the worst. Could he get away though? Part him said yes, but something about his girl in front of him screamed that he was a dead beastman walking. There was no emotion in her eyes as she just stared at him. To say that it was unnerving would be understating the feeling.

A noise above her drew his attention and he gaped as another figure shrouding in a full hooded cloak dropped from the bell tower of the church and landed with little effort and impact. She whispered something to the girl. The dread in his gut increased tenfold because throughout the entire exchange from this new figure dropping down to her departure so swift that she seemed merely vanish without a clue; the girl staring at him never blinked or looked away from him.

"Time to work."

"Eh?" He muttered as she too suddenly vanished in a swirl of dark mists and shadows. "Where did that girl go? Gyaaah!"

A sharp pain shot through his chest. Looking down, his eyes bulged as he saw a blade coming out of the darkness beneath him. The weapon twisted, rending his heart before retreating back into the shadows. His blood spilled out as he collapsed on the ground. An agonizing pain spread throughout his whole body as he bled out. Venom? Poison of some kind? Never mind his torn and destroyed heart. If the blow had somehow missed, this venom was killing him. It was as if the lives of all the food he had consumed were dragging his body into a pit of eternal retribution.

He heard the girl's voice again as he vision began to fade.

"Beastman, eliminated. Orders . . . understood. Standing by my liege."

* * *

 **Tildeus Church Inside**

* * *

The villagers cringed and looked about with worry on their faces as a howl was cut short. Then swiftly afterward their was a blood curdling scream from a different direction in the village. Finally another cry of shock and pain resounded from very close by. There had been no sounds of battle or any other clashes. It was eerie how it progressed. There had been nothing, and then in quick short order, three screams and followed by silence yet again.

Cecilia stood in the center of the chapel with a calm expression as the front entrance opened slowly. The villagers looked to the entrance with apprehension. The girl who entered was the short haired Kurome. She waved to her fellow guardian and smiled.

"All clear. Luserina is tracking the one we let get away to their leader and main gathering. All the others are taken care of."

Cecilia nodded as Esdeath, Akame, and Draconis entered the front doors without a scratch on them. It was a comfort that the villagers sighed and relaxed in. Draconis spoke, his voice calm and clear.

"The scout group as Kurome might have mentioned already, has been dealt with. We are just waiting on Luserina's report back on their location and then we'll move to the next phase."

The group nodded as they all gathered around. Aarik bowed to him as he approached.

"My thanks yet again for your assistance. You and yours are always welcome here. We may not have much, but we would be honored by your presence at any time."

Draconis cupped his chin in thought before looking at Aarik with a curious expression.

"Actually Aarik I would ask you one other thing." The man in question blinked but nodded anyway.

"Certainly Sir Draconis."

"I would like to know if once we are done here you could send a runner to the capital of your kingdom to have me granted an audience with the Queen. Having seen the nature of these beastmen invaders so far has me both concerned and curious. I believe I could help with the dire straights the kingdom is in, but I'd like to speak with her Majesty first."

He frowned slightly.

"Sir Draconis. The runner would not be a problem, but the Queen would be rather busy."

"Hrmm . . . perhaps, yet something tells me that due to the condition of the kingdom now and its plight, receiving news of a beastmen raid being defeated utterly would spark her interest. Give me and mine until morning and this group terrorizing your fellow villagers will be no more than a faded worry."

Aarik frowned, but nodded in acceptance. But how would they accomplish this? Draconis looked off to the north east of the town and he frowned before talking.

"Luserina? That was faster than anticipated. Did something happen?"

Aarik watched with a few others as Draconis seemed to be talking to himself out loud. However the women who accompanied him did not have concerned expressions. They merely watched their liege with patient looks. Was this some kind of telepathy?

He nodded, probably as he accepted details of his teammates message. An eye brow lifted in surprise from the man.

"Oh? Reconfirm that? I see. Hold position and I'll send Akame, Kurome, and Cecilia. Esdeath and I will remain here and handle this newer group . . . hmm? Captured people? Then do what you can to keep them safe. Coordinate with your comrades. They're on the way now."

He looked at the three women and waved his hand with a firm, commanding gesture. Lady Cecilia held her hand out and a black portal the size of a human appeared and swirled with dark energy as she looked to raven black haired girls. They both nodded and stepped into the portal, disappearing into the blackness before Cecilia bowed to Draconis and then entered it herself. The portal collapsed, leaving them all with the teal haired woman of ice and Draconis.

"Bring me their leader. None of the others are to survive. Letting any of them get away will give away our existence and possible powers to their allies. I normally don't do complete eradication orders, but we're dealing with invasion according to these villagers. We don't know the full extent of the invasion's forces, so let no word of us get away. Use your discretion."

Aarik wondered about that mysterious portal. But Cecilia was a magic caster and so he didn't really question it. Draconis set a hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"Aarik, keep everyone inside the church a bit longer. Luserina says that a smaller group of beastmen met up with the group she was tracking their scout back to. Esdeath and I will be taking care of them."

Aarik gimaced. How many more would show up? Surely they were tiring with so many fights in a single day. Even adamantites had limits. Yet when he watched the two of them walk to the door, the beautiful woman seemed even more energetic. Draconis himself seemed oddly laid back despite the focus in his eyes.

* * *

 **Beastman Raid Camp**

* * *

Jin Lu Quo sat with sweat running down his brow. Their Alpha had shown up unexpectedly. He had grown impatient when they were not back before all the other parties. Hearing that one of his groups had not yet reported in, the Alpha was furious and set out to check the village himself with fifteen of his best. The rest of them that had come with him were now waiting for the results.

It was then that one of his wolfmen scouts returned with terror and abject fear in his eyes.

"Danger! Adventurers killed them all!"

All of the beastmen gathered began to mutter among each other at his senseless rambling. Jin walked up to him and glared. He did not have the time to be dealing with delusional pack mates.

"Shut up! What do you mean?" the wolfman crouched on the ground and stared at the ground like he had seen a wraith.

"The Fierce Flash, the Holy Lord is there. He and his adventurers killed them all."

The mutters turned to angered and furious roars. The food in the pens trembled at the frenzy that had whipped up around them. Jin Lu Quo snarled at the news. The Fierce Flash continued to be a pain the side. His group was the only one who managed to consistently fend off assaults and raids whenever they showed up. Some of the beastmen turned toward the pens.

"Damned human adventurer! We should make these food bits an example!" Several others roared in agreement as despair rushed through the humans in the pens. Jin roared and slammed a fist onto a tree stump he had been using as a seat. The cracking of the wood drew their attention as the dead wood gave way under his fist.

"Enough! ENOUGH! Alpha has ordered them not touched until he returns from the village. You want to draw his anger?! Go ahead!"

That grisly reminder of what happened to those who angered their Alpha made most of them calm down and think twice. He was a sabretooth beastman that could rend mithril with his claws and fangs. He was lightning fast and utterly bloodthirsty. Prone to fits of rage and bloodlust, no one tempted his angery bouts of blood frenzy.

Satisfied that he had gotten things under control again, he turned to his scout.

"What did this man look like?" Unlike most of the beastmen here, Jin actually knew what that Holy Lord looked like. He had seen the man on the battlefield and he was deserving of the title Fierce Flash. The blade he wielded glowed bright and whenever he swung it, it was like a flash lashed out at his targets. He was accompanied by four others, two women and two men.

Jin actually understood the concept behind mistaken identity. While he certainly hoped that it wasn't that group, he wanted to be sure rather than jump to conclusions.

"He wore shining armor with a cloak and sword." Jin fought the urge to punch him for such a generic description. "He could see me clearly in pitch blackness with no light. I swung my axe at him and it shattered when I hit him. I hit his neck full power and my weapon shattered!"

The group exchanged glances. They had never heard of something like that happened to any of their own.

"He glared at me and told me to answer his question and then when I did he told me to run away." The wolfman was sent flying by Jin as he caught him across the snout with a full strength haymaker.

"You fool! He let you go to find us! His team is probably right on your heels!"

The wolfman looked at him panicking from his prone location. "But I used no lights and made my retreat erratic!"

"Idiot! You just told us that he could see you without light!" By this point a crowd had formed an the beastmen began to grow anxious. "You five! Gather the nightwatchers and have them on the lookout! We have adventurers approaching! Everyone up and ready! A powerful adventurer team is on its way. You! Who was with him? Two men and two women?"

The wolfman shook his head. "F-four women, no men but him."

Jin frowned. That did not sound like the Holy Lord's usual team.

"What did they look like?"

"One was tall and had light blue hair that went to her shins. The two others had raven black hair and one had emerald green hair like feathers!"

Now Jin was beginning to get nervous. Four women who looked nothing like the two he had seen with that Fierce Flash human? Had that queen child managed to get hold of another adventurer team that could match the Fierce Flash's team?

All around him, groups of beastmen who had the best night vision headed out to take up sentry positions. The thought of a new group that could fight like that group of adventurers or like those fighters from that ally of the Draconic Kingdom . . . the Slane Theocracy he thought they were called? It was not a good night for him.

Little did he know that it was about to get worse.

* * *

 **A hundred meters from the Beastmen Camp**

* * *

Luserina was grateful that their camp had more than one campfire. It highlighted the majority of all the beastmen quite nicely. The groups of humans trapped in pens numbered three in total. She smirked as she readied her weapon. Ranger, pathfinder, and scout she may have been, but she actually wasn't an archer. A member of the gunner classes from the Valkyrie patch of YGGDRASIL, she specialized in firearms imbued with spells and other abilities. She normally would been hurt by her own weapons due to her sensitive hearing as an elf, but the weapons that Draconis had gifted her nullified that issue.

Legendary Tier firearm set Puff Adders consisted of an assault rifle and a pair of twin mech-guns (Submachine pistols). Puff Adders had a special effect called Hissing Rounds. Special ammunition that worked with the weapons in such a way that instead of a firearms usual audible feedback, each shot that left the muzzles sounded like a Russel viper hissing. The shots also were capable to inflicted the Venom status affliction which was a more potent DoT than Poison.

She felt the [ _Gate_ ] open and Akame and Kurome came out of it. Cecilia followed shortly afterward. The three crouched low as they joined her. To keep their silence, they all joined a [ _Message_ ] network.

" _How many captured humans?"_ Akame asked as she gazed out at the campfires that burned merrily in the distance. At this range they were like dots of orange and yellow, but were large enough to cast an impressive amount of light.

" _Hmm, I estimate 45? I'm not completely sure. One of the prison cages is dug down into the ground a bit."_

" _What about the leader? Have you figured him out?"_ Cecilia this time.

" _Jin is their leader, but even he has a superior. He's the coyote looking one. He just gave orders to the group to send out sentries. I think he believes that his scout was let back on purpose and that we are on the way. He's way smarter than the previous underlings. His boss is a giant beastman resembling a sabretooth tiger. His boss went to the village with fifteen of what I think are his best."_

" _They won't beat Lord Draconis and Esdeath. Even if they could hurt either of them, they're veterans of combat."_ Kurome chuckled and laughed over their link. Akame frowned at her sister and shook her head. They all knew that was very likely the truth, but Draconis had taught them to approach problems cautiously until they knew beyond a doubt that they were the stronger in an engagement.

" _Cecilia, advice on how to go about this? I might have authority at the moment, but you're the tactician, not me."_

" _I have faith that you would make the right decisions, but I would be delighted and honored to help you Luserina."_ The Avalonian grandmaster smiled as she demurred to her comrade.

She was a pure caster build with the ability as a Troubador to cast from horseback in full combat gallop. Being able to be so mobile while casting made keeping her in striking range a pain if you you didn't have any way to close the gap.

" _My thanks Cecilia. I haven't seen any horses among their numbers. Probably used as food or fodder considering most horses panic, and go hysterical in the face of such huge predators."_

Taking an item from a Infinity Haversack, she brought it up to her eye and peered through it. The Spyglass of the Moon was an artifact that allowed the viewer to see at night without the need of torches at a long distance. It was useless to someone with the [ _Darkvision_ ] trait or ability, but to a human, it made an excellent long range nighttime recon tool without having to use magic. After all, magic gave you away the moment it was cast. Sometimes going with non-spell methods paid off.

She could see the groups of night guards scattered about the open plain before them. Despite gentle rises and falls of the land, there were no really large hills that cut off their line of sight completely. This meant that if she needed to mount up and directly engage with her friends she would have all the open area to move as she pleased. The groups of guards number three at the most. They had spread their groups out in a relatively even distance.

Beyond that was the group that also included this Jin Lu Quo beastman. The human captives were in a crude pen of wooden stakes. The next campfire and group of captives was about thirty yards from the first and the last one was twenty more yards from that. Each group of captives was relatively close to the fires. Probably because the beastmen realized that humans were better off near a heat source. It was actually a bit cool warm, but fire was a necessary life line. Her concern was the numbers. There were at least sixty by her count. She also counted about eight archers, their bows crude, but huge. At least a foot taller than her if what she had seen of these beastmen back at the village was any indication.

" _Okay. Here's the plan. Akame will shadow walk to the farthest side of the last campfire. Begin attacking the that flank and sow discord through their ranks. Kurome, take care of the sentries in shadows before joining your sister. I will ride out after you take down the sentries and perform hit and fade tactics to split their attention. Luserina, keep an eye all of the pens. Make sure none of the beastmen get funny ideas about their captives during the attack. Also, if that Jin fellow tries to bolt make sure that he can't."_

" _Can't we just hit this group with selective high tier magic? You can do that can't you Cecilia?"_ Kurome wondered over their link. She sounded vaguely annoyed. Akame bopped her on the head and the younger sister pouted at her sibling.

" _That is true Kurome, but Lord Draconis mentioned that Tier VI magic completely devastated the beastmen he encountered. He didn't even Maximize it. We don't know what the normal standard of magic is here, but if these beastmen are that frail against that magic, then what would it mean if I use higher Tier? We're not trying to tip our hands."_

Luserina hadn't heard that information and so it surprised her. Were they really that weak? If so then even her limited ranger and elven spirit magic would be more than enough. She could get to Tier V, but no higher. Against Lord Draconis's level of power or the other Guardians, her magic was a parlor trick in firepower. Besides, her magic was more supportive and useful outside of combat than during it.

" _Understood. We'll go when Kurome starts moving on the sentries."_

" _Very well. Kurome . . . on you."_

The girl drew her katana. Legendary Tier Yatsufusa, a katana of the dead. The blade was also an elemental blade of lightning and darkness. The corruption of darkness on the other element changed the properties to fell lightning, half of it being unholy. The usually bright light blue or violet now crackled a sinister crimson with black hues. She melted into the darkness and Akame soon followed.

Luserina nodded to Cecilia as she took a prone position and readied her rifle. Because of her extraordinary vision, a scope wasn't needed. She kept both eyes open, watching for the first one to move against the captive humans. Beside her, Cecilia lifted her hand to the air and waited for the chaos to begin.

The first group that Kurome approached with her [ _Shadow Walker_ ] ability were a trio of tigermen. The three were grumbling about having to watch for these supposed adventurers. They had faced adventurers in the past and while they were admittedly annoying, they still died.

"Humph. The Alpha puts too much in that coward. Now he's cleaning up failures."

"Agreed brother. One group? Hardly a challenge for our den! What say you brother . . . brother?"

The two looked back to where their brother had been standing half a second ago. He was gone. Not a trace to be seen. They looked to each other and tilted their heads in confusion. Where'd he go? Maybe to relieve himself?

As they turned to look around for him again, Kurome struck. [ _Shadow Assassinate_ ]; and ability that allowed her four times a day to drag her target up to twice her size category into their shadow and inflict a number of hits equal to a quarter of her stealth stat. Her stealth stat was maxed at 100 so it inflicted 25 hits. It didn't stack with her Sneak Strike bonuses but they could critical and if the target survived the ability they were spat out of the shadow. If they died, they never returned. She had critically struck her first target five times. He had died on the sixth hit though.

The second beastman did not have time to shriek as he suddenly felt gravity fail and was enveloped in utter blackness. He couldn't see anything, nor could he feel anything under his paws. Then he saw it. A single blade approaching him with deadly intent. He could feel the killing intent and tried to shield himself. No one was holding it and he could hear a faint giggling as the blade struck out. The confidence in his tough fur and armor like hide fell when his arm came clean off and a second blade swung at him, taking his other arm off at the elbow.

He screamed as the blade came again and again for his life. He tried to run, swerve, anything to keep this nightmare from claiming him. To no avail, cuts and slashes covered his body before the nightmare came for his neck. His head separated and that was the end. It all happened in an instant. Time and space were distorted and warped in the course of this attack as a shadow didn't care for the concept. Kurome moved to the final beastman tiger.

Wanting to conserve the remaining uses of [ _Shadow Assassinate_ ] she thrust her katana up through the shadow of the last beastman and into his throat. The blade pierced his flesh with little resistance and shot through his spine just below the skull. Twisting the blade, she tore vocal chords and snapped his vertebra apart. The creature gargled and fell to the ground. One of the others from a separate group noticed him fall to the ground.

"Hey! What's going on?! Where did the others go? Hyiiieeh!?" The panicked shriek was the only other thing that left his throat as Kurome shot from the shadows and twirled through the air and past him like a shadowed twister. Yatsufusa slashed through his neck and face. The head flew from its neck in quarters, gray matter and blood flying everywhere.

His groups fellow members did see this and screamed at the specter that just killed their packmate with absurd ease. This spinning dervish of death had crimson eyes that glowed the blackness like a reaper. They sprouted their claws and swung wildly at this shadowy killer.

"I-intruder! Gyraaagh!" He shouted and gargled as he died with a blade to the lungs and heart as she thrust the katana between his ribs from the side. Swinging the katana free through his back and spine, blood and gore showered the grasses and dirt as the blade sought out the next victim. The final beastman of this sentry team went to punch her. His fist was huge. He was an gorillaman.

The attack was hasty and more of a fearful reaction at the sudden violence. Such a telegraphed strike was impossibly slow to Kurome as she ducked the punch and lashed out at the offending appendage: once, twice, thrice . . . as she twirled under it. The arm came apart like sausage as she whipped Yatsufusa at his knees, cleaving his legs from under him before gripping the weapon in both hands and ripping skyward with a slash that cleaved his head and shoulders from the rest of his body as it fell forward from overreaching. His screams echoed in the night before she had landed the final blow. All manner of stealth was gone and the blood bath began in earnest.

All attention turned toward the sounds of terrified beastmen. A few of them who lacked sharp claws grabbed up swords and axes. As they approached the source of the disturbance Akame made her move. Jumping high into the air, she let gravity take over as she fell toward her target. One of the archers.

"Eliminate!" She slashed down with her second katana Kirichimonji. A Legendary Tier cursed katana that prevented damage taken from regenerating via Fast Healing or [ _Regeneration_ ] spell for thirty seconds. In this case, the results of wounds from the weapon on lost limbs or arterial strikes were enough to guarantee death via the bleed out. It was a crystalline red forged from the level 80 material Scarletite.

"ARGH!" The lithe catwoman screamed as her arm came off at the shoulder. Another slash flashed out and her other arm went away as well. Akame dashed at the startled beastmen as they realized that there was more than one threat now. The bearmen swung axes and she jumped into the air again, cartwheeling over the swings and between the two. Spinning like an inverted top with her katana whipping about as she did so, the two beastmen collapsed to the ground dead from the strikes to the neck and head.

She skidded across the dirt as she landed and thrust her sword back behind her, scoring another beastman in the chest. He gargled, but reached for her as he tried to clench his muscles to trap her sword. His head exploded without her moving. The others around them shouted in fear and confusion. Akame smiled. It was Luserina's shooting. Her hearing picked up a hissing snake in the distance; her rifle.

 _Careful Akame. Don't let them grab you._

Luserina mildly chided her as another beastman fell with puncture wounds that traveled clean through him. The enemy was now thoroughly panicking and angry. The humans in their prison cage didn't know what was going on save that they were being rescued. They began cheering for this young woman and whoever was helping her free them.

At Jin's camp section, he paled. They had come and from the hints he could see from the edges of the campfire light, a shadowy wraith darted and twirled and lunged through the air at his guards, making fillets of them.

 _A magic blade? How else could such a thing happen?_

It didn't seem like this thing was hampered by darkness so he grabbed a torch and threw it out into the darkness. The dry grasses lit on fire and began to spread. The light from the flames made the wraith appear, though it didn't stop moving. What he saw made him gasp.

"A girl?!" When the wolfman who had run away had mentioned women, he failed to mention how young! She couldn't be more than her midteens . . . barely more than a youngling in his eyes! Then he saw the weapon she was wielding as it cut through another beastman like butter. A katana wreathed in red lightning.

The girl thrust her sword into the ground and lightning of dark crimson shot into the air. He backpedaled, what kind of magic was this? It was sinister and made his fur stand on end.

"Yatsufusa, [ _Shadow Summon_ ]!" Three shadows appeared from the ground around her and seemed to await her orders. "Kill the beastmen. Do not touch the humans."

Shadows were medium sized incorpreal undead who dealt strength damage with every touch. A person drained of all their strength died and became another shadow under the command of the one that killed them. Because it left no body, spells like [ _Raise Dead_ ] and even the Tier VII [ _Resurrection_ ] would fail due to the utter lack of a material remains. For such a weak undead, it was absolutely overpowered for its tier, but the moment a person attacked with a magical weapon of any kind they could be felled in a single good hit.

The issue was hitting it though. So for most people of the New World, this was almost a legendary terror that no one wanted to face. Unfortunately, if it noticed you it was more than likely going to kill you. They could fly so unless you had a horse that could run long enough for the shadow to get bored of trying to catch you, well, good luck . . .

The shadows fell upon the beastmen who swung with claws and fangs to no avail as the shadows swarmed one of them and its screams gradually died out and it went limp in death. This was even more terrifying than seeing the girl slicing their own to pieces. At least they could try dodging attacks.

Jin fell to his backside. What kind of monster in the form a child was this?! It was then that the neighing of a horse in gallop met his ears. He turned to see a figure riding toward them. The rider turned to travel parallel to them and he seized up. A ball of fire flew from her hands and into a cluster group around the flashing blade of the other raven haired woman who was sowing death among them. The young woman jumped up and out of the way as the flaming sphere slammed into the group and exploded. The fires engulfed their targets and burned them to death.

[ _Fireball_ ]. A magic caster on horseback with Tier III spells.

Those who were strong enough to survive the spell were quickly finished by the sword of the other raven haired woman as the shadows swarmed about the others who tried to engage the sword wielders. The young one who summoned those shadows had joined the longer haired woman and he immediately could see the similarities. Sisters?

A collection of crescents made of glowing green wisps of wind shot through the beastmen in his part of the camp as they made their way to help his assaulted comrades. Those who didn't go to pieces and chunks were thrown the the ground. One of his most trusted looked to him in panic.

"What do we do?! We've never seen adventurers like this!" Jin could hardly believe the slaughter occurring. He glanced at the two girls, they were covered in the gore and blood of their work yet didn't even seem to begin to show signs of fatigue.

"Retreat!" He began to get up as his guard nodded and began to do so. A gross popping sound made him turn to see his guard's head explode. He didn't know what happened. It wasn't a spell and neither one of those girls or those shadows were approaching his location yet. He went to run when the pop sound echoed accompanied by blinding pain. His knee gave out. Hitting the ground, he screamed as he looked to his leg.

The appendage was twisted at a sick angle. He could feel his leg going numb and realized that some kind of venom was spreading through him. An arrow? A sling bullet? Looking around he couldn't see any arrows or stones that came from a sling throw. No bolts of a human crossbow either. He glanced in the direction of where his knee had taken the hit. He had retained enough cognition during the attack to register that much.

 _Impossible! What is that?_

A cloaked figure knelt far, far in the distance. He could barely make it out, but it wasn't an archer from the profile that he could make out. The distance was impossible for archers to hit accurately at night. The object in its hands flashed. A sharp hissing like a venomous snake sounded as a beastman closed on the humans in the pen, obvious last effort revenge on his mind. The beastman was pierced by something all the way through. He staggered before two more hisses sounded and two more piercing wounds appeared on him. He wobbled and fell dead.

 _What is this? What kind of nightmare is this?!_

"[ _Purge Venom_ ]." The numbing sensation left him, but his leg was still a mess. He heard it before he turned to look behind him. The clopping of hooves told him that the mounted magic caster had made it to his location. "You are our prisoner now. The rest will fall to my comrades by our liege's orders. You, Jin Lu Quo, are wanted for questioning."

"Boss!" His only remaining personal guard cried out to him with worried and frightened expression in his eyes. It was obvious in their eyes. They were grossly outmatched and fighting would only get them killed. A bright green energy rested in this woman's hands. More than likely the spell that cut through their fellows like a scythe through wheat.

"Stop! Don't fight this one. Just surrender!" He turned to the woman on horseback. "You wouldn't kill one who surrendered would you?!"

Her eyes pierced him through as her voice responded cold and calculating.

"Did you do the same for those that surrendered to you? No you view them as food. They die horribly even in surrender."

His expression fell. She was completely right. Those who had surrendered still were eaten, or worse at times. Is this what the human phrase, "An eye for an eye" meant? He still had to try though, his remaining guard was young and only followed his orders from pack leaders. He hadn't even been on a hunt yet. Jin Lu Quo had learned how humans felt about honor and the thing called "soldiering".

He buried his face in the dirt and held clenched hands together.

"Please spare that one! He is young and hasn't even hunted yet! He only follows orders and hasn't yet claimed his own first blood! For honor! Mercy on him! I beg you."

"[ _Detect Lies_ ]. Is that true?" The young one mimicked his superior, burying his face in the dirt and groveling.

"Senior Jin Lu Quo speaks truth! I haven't been allowed to hunt. Only been given food and scraps until I am of age!"

She stared at him with a fierce some gaze. A huff left her lips.

"It doesn't seem like you are lying, but do not try my patience and good graces. Your name?"

"I haven't been granted one." The sounds of fighting died down and Jin glanced to his side. Most of all the group had been killed and only two of them were like he was. Face first in the dirt and begging mercy. The two women wielding katanas had not sheathed their blades, but did not seem to bear their aggressive stances anymore.

The magic caster frowned at his subordinate's answer.

"You are not granted a name until you come of age?"

The young beastman nodded from his prone stance. A new set of footsteps approached from their left and they saw a cloaked figure with a strange weapon. Was it some kind of staff? Not that he was in a position to ask. If she was using that to kill his men from such a distance, it was beyond dangerous.

"Cecilia, why are you keeping that one and the others alive? Akame, Kurome! Same question to you!"

"It's simple Luserina. We don't stoop to their level. We don't kill surrendering opponents in cold blood. We have honor."

This new woman shrugged and gestured to the captives who were being released by the two raven haired women.

"Tell that to the captives we're freeing. They are going to want blood."

"I will handle that part. Bind these two and mend his leg."

The woman sighed but nodded and approached Jin. She took a knee in front of him and looked him dead in the eyes. He gasped. She was beautiful, too much so for a human. Then he caught it. It was slight and hidden well with her hair and hood. Pointed ears.

"An elf?" She paused at his quiet words of awe.

"Yes, and I'd appreciate it if you didn't go yelling it. I sense that my kind are not as appreciated as our lord sees me to be. Don't try anything funny. Mercy can be rescinded if you backstab us."

He nodded vigorously that he understood. He respected strength as a beastman, but he had learned the difference between strength physically and strength of the inner person. "Character" he thought they called it. It was why he had slowly started to wean himself completely off of human flesh and started eating taken cattle, chicken, and vegetables. It had garnered him a negative reputation among his own, but he hadn't felt any different from when he had consumed humans.

The youthful beastman behind him got the same message from this elf and he also nodded. The youngling had shown promise as he grew interested in the things that Jin had learned and sought to do so as well. Things had been rough for the youth because of it, yet he still came back to Jin for more learning. It was like he was his own pup.

They let themselves be bound. The restraints felt like some kind of metal. He wasn't sure if they could break them, but he wasn't going to try. It seemed like the other two also realized this as they were being restrained as well. The elf merely prodded them on with what looked to be a smaller version of that odd looking staff.

She took a guarding position as did the short haired girl with the katana. She waved her hand at the shadows that had she had summoned. Their number had multiplied and he shivered at the idea of them not being controlled. They all disappeared at the same time.

The humans being brought out of the pens lavished praises on their saviors. When the final group of captives were released, they looked at the four tied up beastmen in loathing and hatred.

"Why are they being held? They don't deserve it after everything they've done!"

"Yeah! They didn't spare anyone who surrendered either!"

"Kill them!"

Cries of a frenzying mob began to ring out until Luserina and Cecilia had enough. Drawing a different gun from her inventory, she raised it to the sky and pulled the trigger as her comrade sent a bolt of lightning skyward as well. The ear splitting boom of the two actions made everyone flinch and cow.

"Enough! They have surrendered to us and as the victors we have sway over their judgment. Would you really drop to their level in killing them when they have lost all will to resist? Would your lost want to see you walk down a path of senseless revenge?! To march to your deaths against beings stronger than you in every regard save perhaps intellect? Or has that left you as well?"

"But they have taken everything from many of us!"

"You still have your life now don't you?" Akame's soft voice quieted many of them. She wore a soft expression. "As a survivor, you must continue to live for the sake of those lost. Don't bloody your hands. It helps no one."

Many of the villagers seemed to understand what she was saying. A few were still disgruntled by the unusual mercy being extended to the beastmen by their saviors. Even fewer still glared at the four bound beastmen with utter hatred.

"Regardless," Luserina commented as she stood between the humans and the beastmen. "you are all under our watch by order of our liege. Cecilia, you take them back to Tildeus. I'm going to bring these four back home. Chronos and Samael can handle them."

Her compatriots nodded in agreement and Luserina opened a [ _Gate_ ] which startled all present as she pointed at the beastmen and then to the portal.

"In! You're all going to meet my superior and my liege's second in command."

The beastmen looked at the portal with fear and apprehension. Seeing this, she sighed. Walking over to it, she put her head in all the way and then pulled it back out. Her hood remained in place and she sighed.

"There! It won't eat you, or kill you. Now. Get. In." The beastmen nodded and hastily made their way through as she practically growled at them.

Cecilia sighed. This was going to be a long walk back with all the survivors they had saved.

* * *

 **Tildeus Village Square**

* * *

Draconis sat on a barrel against a house outer wall. Before him was the Alpha of the beastmen raiding parties and fifteen silver backed apemen. The Alpha was a large sabertooth tigerman. His primary fangs were easily two feet long and razor sharp. The claws he had extended and retracted as he flexed his hands in anticipation. He didn't know who this bastard thought he was, but the woman before them who grinned at him like a child who got the best gift on their birthday was going to die horribly.

His men all beat their chests, the sound like battledrums echoed loud and clear for all to hear within miles. Even the villagers in the church shuddered at the impending doom to come should Draconis and Esdeath be killed.

"I know not who you are, but your bitch will die here." The Alpha growled roughly. His voice was like sandpaper on a metal pipe. He had seen the pyre of his brethren on the way into the village but not sensed anyone else in their houses. Then the scent of these two met their senses.

"Watch your language here. Esdeath is a huntress of superlative caliber and you will do well to fearfully respect her for it." The man's eyes sharpened to a point and a wave of power shot through all present. His apemen guard all fell to a knee and he felt a shiver run up his arms and down his spine.

 _What? That was like I can do! What is this aura of power? Human food can't do that._

"You are like that adventurer group."

"Hm? What adventurer group? Like teams? Squadrons?" The man's curious questions made no sense to him. He was a human. How did a human not know what their own forces were called? The woman before him grinned again. He growled in aggravation. Something about these two seemed out of place.

 _Their scents are off. Human food doesn't smell like this. She smells like winter snow and ice with blood. He smells like burning air and lightning._

"You lot! Spread out and go get all the food here! I will teach these two a lesson."

As the silverbacks nodded and began to spread out, the ice blue haired woman snapped her fingers and a wall of ice crystallized into existence around the village square. It was massive and even he couldn't jump over it. Even if he could, he could see the top was jagged and uneven.

"A magic caster?!"

"What magic is this?"

"Impossible, no magic caster can do this!"

The yells of disbelief from his minions echoed his own thoughts. Such a spell with such a massive area of effect had never been encountered even against the magic caster of that Fierce Flash bastard. Looking back at the woman, she was not even breath hard. In fact, she looked ecstatic.

"Now now . . . we can have you all spreading out and causing chaos here when my lord so mercifully saved these people. This should keep you in place."

The temperature began to drop dangerously cold. Even with his fur he began to shiver. Ice began to creep across the ground from her feet in all directions. A mote of white fluttered past his eyes, followed by another. Then two more did and he realized what was happening. It was snowing inside this wall of ice. Snowing in the beginning of summer!

"You wanted to play and feast did you not? Or can you not do anything when the opponent is stronger than you? It makes you nothing more than bullies."

 _This makes no sense! We are the strong! The strong exist to devour the weak!_

"Kill her!" The minions under him rushed the woman. Killing intent clear in each of their eyes, he smiled with a mouth full of razor sharp fangs.

No man had ever faced fifteen silverbacks and lived. Even the Fierce Flash had fallen back from such a thing. Rumors abounded about how he killed several of them while doing so, but they said nothing about him just taking all of their blows without a care. He smirked.

"No one is able to take a beating from all fifteen of these silverbacks at once! She will die a blood pulp!"

The silverbacks set about clobbering the woman to death. Punches and wild haymakers flew about her as she stood there with a bored expression. Unlike so many human pieces of meat before her, she put up no token defenses, just stood there like she was enjoying the night air.

"What are you doing?! Hit her!"

"W-we are!"

"Argh, my hand!"

All of their attacks ceased as on the them pulled away gripping his arm. The sight that they took in sent ripples of disbelief and fear through them. His digits were mangled and twisted in grotesque angles. All his digits were broken and in the adrenaline of the moment and wild furious swings, they had not noticed their own hands and fingers breaking.

Three more of them began screaming too as the condition of their hands finally caught up with the receding of adrenaline. The Alpha gawked. What kind of being was this woman? His minions had broken their hands in attacking her and she hadn't move a finger!

"Esdeath. Put them out of their suffering. If they can't get past your passive defenses then there is no point. Leave this Alpha. I have him."

"Yes my lord." She turned and bowed elegantly. The beastmen before him were encased in ice as she did so. The frost on the ground that they stood on had sprouted up like vines and entangled them all until each one was fully encased. Their strangled cries of pain from the cold cut off. It was silent yet again and he could only shiver.

 _What magic is this?_

"Scatter like snow." She snapped her fingers again and the encased victims in ice exploded into misty ice. Particles of delicate frost were all that remained. No bodies. No blood. Not screams. Just an echoing chill and reverberations of her snapping fingers.

He took a step back.

"Monster!" It was the only thing he could come up with in a situation as absurd as this. She wore a sword but never drew it from its sheath. She had barely moved at all. She hadn't even muttered the names of her spells! Were they spells? Some kind of innate power that didn't have titles? An inhuman? Did this man employ demons?

The man stood from his seat as he congratulated this woman, this Esdeath? Death as a part of her name? The man walked toward him with cool and calm demeanor. If this woman answered and served him as powerful as she was, then what could he do? The thought terrified him. Him! An Alpha! Terrified!

The man's eyes glowed and he saw the truth. Vertical pupils, prismatic colors, and when he smiled . . . fangs! He let a breath escape his lips forcefully and the Alpha flinched. Was that a flicker of flame that had slipped from his lips?

 _No, that was my eyes tricking me!_

He had heard other Alphas speak in whispered, measured voices that if a dragon appeared, they wouldn't stand a chance unless every single clan of the Beastman Nations united. Yet they hand't encountered any such being. That fact had emboldened them all and still after months of invasion, they still faced no such threat. It had been concluded that dragons cared not for the affairs of measly humans and as such they had free reign.

Now this man had appeared with a minion more powerful than he could comprehend. The signs pointed to an inhuman monster. He was beginning to realize that humans were not the only beings to inhabit a land. Had they just awoken the anger of something beyond them?!

"Monster?" the man's voice dripped with anger and fury. "You kill and eat humans; man, woman, and child without remorse or question. You kill those that would beg mercy. You care nothing for the land or the prospect of a better life via co-existence. Then when you face something stronger than you that would see you no different than you did humankind you call me the monster?!"

The man's aura flared and the Alpha fell to his knees in a daze. It was beyond anything he had ever felt. More than merely frightening or even menacing. It could only be described as . . . awesome . . . More intense than any Alpha's presence.

"You would beg your betters mercy if they threatened you would you not?"

His sudden question threw him off. Sure he would if he faced his superiors! Wait . . . was this what he meant?

"Oh . . . OH! I . . . I understand now! Mercy!"

"No." the man's eyes hardened like diamonds. "You are the one who lead this genocide of humankind in this area yes?"

He swallowed. It was true. His posture and eyes must have answered for him because the inhuman before him glared.

"Did you feel remorse for your actions? Questioned even once why you couldn't find other food sources? Put yourself in their skin and life and think of what it would be like if you were the one being eaten and who's children were being eaten? No, you're regretting being caught and punished for your crimes!"

He didn't understand . . . What was he going on about?! But he was right about one thing. He hadn't thought about any what ifs. He loved human flesh. He regretted nothing during his conquests. Was this what Jin Lu Quo had warned him of? Of creatures beyond their capacity to fight? The wrath of entities stronger than even them in every regard who loved humans as weak as they were?

"You don't deserve it. But I will grant you one thing. You will fight me with everything you have. You will die, but I will do something that you never did if the tales of these villagers is anything to go on. I will kill you instantly and with little pain."

The man took a stance and drew his sword. The blade thrummed eagerly and glowed slightly. It was pitch black until the last third of the blade and then was pure white. Blue gemstones glowed in their homes in the hilt and cross guard.

The Alpha drew himself up and cursed himself. What was going on?! Why did he have to run into someone this powerful? Why did he have to answer to this man?

With a roar, he lunged at Draconis with claws extended. He swiped furiously, mixing punches into the melee. The man didn't move from his spot as he focused purely on defense. The flat of his sword deflected claws and he turned away punches with his free hand. The man didn't even look at the incoming strikes, merely stared at a point on his body. He couldn't understand it. How was this man blocking and parrying everything?

Jumping back, he found himself panting. Never before had he had to attack so relentlessly only to be rebuffed in every attempt. He would have to use it! Martial Arts . . . he knew three and they had never failed him.

 _This has to hit him!_

"[ _Ability Boost_ ], [ _Flow Acceleration_ ]!" His body glowed two different colors for a brief moment upon activating his martial arts. The two entities before him were surprised! He grinned. They obviously didn't know about this! He wondered why they didn't, but he could ponder that later. He lunged even faster, his martial arts were overkill on humans that couldn't keep up with him when he wasn't using them. Becoming like a blur, he rushed at Draconis.

"[ _Crazy Rend_ ]!" He lashed out, his strikes becoming a flurry of cross thatched claws that would tear flesh and armor to ribbons. He had torn apart mythril armor with this attack. No man in the kingdom could defend against it!

The swordsman before him had dropped his stance. Surprise was etched into his face and no defense was attempted.

 _Yes! You're shocked at this ultimate attack of mine! Be ripped apart! I'll eat you first and them kill that ice bitch and gain both of your powers!_

Blood flew everywhere as his martial art connected fully. [ _Crazy Rend_ ] was a martial art known only to the beastman races that had claws. It was a maddened flurry of ripping and tearing that culminated in an 'x' shaped strike that disemboweled its target before they hit the ground. More than one unfortunate human and even a few other beastmen during tribal challenges for power had died to. It truly was a horrific attack. The corpse wouldn't even be recognizable, just a splattered and scattered mess of flesh and bone bits and splayed guts and gore. It was a mercy if you died from the first hit.

Even worse, it was a charging attack. If you were caught in its path, you were a dead man. Multiple kills with the martial art resulted in a gruesome path of death. Human defenders had learned very quickly that if that martial art came your way, you abandoned formations and friends least you all died horribly. It had never failed him. It was this confidence in his move that gave him hope of victory as blood flew.

 _Wait . . . why do my hands feel light?_ The attack finished and he looked at his foe. He was covered in blood all over, so why was he still standing?

"Are you finished? Looking for these?" He held his left hand up and held like a spread deck of cards were his claws. The Alpha screamed as the pain settled in hard and fast. Bringing his hands up, he stared in horror at the tips of his fingers that now spurt blood from split apart sheaths. "That was new. What manner of weapon skill was that? Needless to say I used a few skills of my own on that to 'blunt' your attack so to speak. De-clawing?"

Esdeath laughed at his play on words. She had seen his every move and watched as he had plucked his claws from his hands at the first and second swipe of the attack. It was a reactionary skill called [ _Assault Breaker_ ]. Usable by knights and enhanced with the guardian passive skills of damage reduction and defense, he could break the weapon or natural weapon power of incoming attacks. It seemed like in this New World, it did breaking rather literally. In this case, ripping his claws out. Two claws on either hand had actually made contact, but the armor had negated the damage completely.

"If that was your wild card, you've lost. As I told you. I'll end this quickly."

He slashed skyward and the Alpha felt a cold breezed fly through him before his vision split down the middle. He didn't even scream as he fell into two halves. Esdeath nodded impressed. It was one of his Holy Knight skills. [ _Heavenly Bladework: Northswain's Strike_ ]. A skill imbued with the Holy element and Justice subtype. It manifested as a blazing orange blade of energy that resembled spire that shot up and through its target from the ground and then instantly retracted back into the earth. It had a 20% chance to instant kill in addition to the damage it inflicted when all of its enhancements were maxed out. Granted, he hadn't maxed it out because he hated relying on instant kill chances. His other [ _Heavenly Bladework_ ] skills were far more effective and reliable.

This battle was over, though could it truly have been considered a battle to begin with? It wasn't something she was going to dwell on. Her master was covered in blood.

"My lord. Allow me." She summoned a swirling mist of snow and frost. Not strong enough to harm him but cleanse away the blood and other signs of violence. He tossed the claws to the ground at the bisected beastman's corpse.

"Thank you Esdeath. Please drop the barrier." The ice wall surrounding the entire village square faded into misty particles as she dispelled her barrier. All that was left was to await the return of the others. He sighed and walked back in the direction of the church. This had been a long day. Something told him they would only get longer.

* * *

 **Character Profile 2**

* * *

 **Akame**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Draconis's bodyguard, Assassin, and Kurome's elder sister

 **Residence:** The Lair (Private Room)

 **Alignment:** Evil (Sense of Justice) (-200 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Fiend = 15 lvs; Greater Fiend = 10 lvs; Archfiend = 5 lvs

 **Class Levels:** Samurai = 15 lvs; Blade Lord = 10 lvs; Sword Saint = 5 lvs; Rogue = 10 lvs; Assassin = 10 lvs; Master Assassin = 5 lvs; Shadow Blade = 5 lvs

 **Total Levels:** 90 [Racial Levels 30/Class Levels 60]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a scale of 100

 **HP:** 80

 **MP:** 30

 **Physical Attack:** 80

 **Physical Defense:** 65

 **Dexterity:** 90

 **Magical Attack:** 20

 **Magical Defense:** 50

 **Resistances:** 80

 **Special:** 75

* * *

 **Character Profile 3**

* * *

 **Kurome**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Draconis's bodyguard, Assassin, Akame's younger sister

 **Residence:** The Lair (Private Room or shares with Akame)

 **Alignment:** Evil (Sense of Justice) (-250 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Fiend = 15 lvs; Greater Fiend = 10 lvs; Archfiend = 5 lvs

 **Class Levels:** Samurai = 15 lvs; Blade Lord = 10 lvs; Necromancer = 10 lvs; Rogue = 10 lvs; Assassin = 5 lvs; Master Assassin = 5 lvs; Reaper of Heroes = 5 lvs

 **Total Levels:** 90 [Racial Levels 30/Class Levels 60]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a scale of 100

 **HP:** 65

 **MP:** 65

 **Physical Attack:** 70

 **Physical Defense:** 50

 **Dexterity:** 75

 **Magical Attack:** 40

 **Magical Defense:** 55

 **Resistances:** 80

 **Special:** 75

* * *

 **End Chapter Notes and Review Responses**

* * *

 **First and Foremost!** I love getting reviews and tactful critiques of my work. Pointed out a grammatical error here or there is good. I thank those sharp eyes readers. Speculation is great too, I enjoy seeing that my writing gets mental gears rolling!

On the flip side of that however, blind assumption of what my work is trying to say or allude to and then calling me out on it? C'mon really? I honest to god laughed my butt off reading a particular set of recent reviews that just are so far off base it's sad. I've read several iterations of the Legend of King Arthur and the Round Table. I like characters in certain series. They're given shout outs and tributes.

There's deep thinking, then their baseless over deep thinking. Yeesh. On that note, onto the reviews.

* * *

 **UndeadLord22:** Point that thing another direction! Glad to see you're enjoying it. Thanks for the support.

 **XXX1994:** Thanks for the review! Yes he should be. However it has only been a single day the New World. He's actually getting the jump on Ainz in this case. According to the chronology on the wiki Ainz didn't actually get to Carne Village until having been in the New World for 4 days. Draconis is jumping in the second day.

 **MadDan90:** Glad you enjoyed the message in the last chapter. Please keep with the story!

 **PervySageChuck:** Haha! Don't worry about that. The Bunny will have appropriate screen time and grisly hilarity to go with. And yes, that is a possibility as well concerning his subordinates, but that's the thing, he wants that to keep him in line and make sure he doesn't go beyond himself. He has seen what extremes to either side can do to people. Thanks for the time and reviews you send in!

 **RyuujiVantek:** Thanks man! Woman?! Who knows . . . Anyway, Artorias and her friends will have a few chapters in the near future. Take a guess where they got sent . . . muhahahaha! Also, don't worry too much about that. Everyone in the New World has enough on their plate starting out that certain events with Ainz won't even be known to the others until later - after said events occur. They might catch wind of a few things, but nothing specific. Word of mouth is not as reliable in the New World if the LN's are any judge of that.

 **Zandaino:** All the hyphens in your name needs me to shorten it a bit. Sorry! Yeah, Dragons are USUALLY ( **I'm glaring at you Skyrim** ) extremely powerful. One of the prime reasons for the huge EXP hit they take. Good luck on whatever it is you're making progress on! Thanks for the time and I hope this helps even a little.

 **Awayuki:** It gladdens me to see reviews of readers enjoying my writing. I love reading others works too so have fun enjoying the story!

 **Okay, now for the elephant in the room.**

 **Tomosada:** I appreciate your time to read my story and review it. However. You're assumptions just lunge out at me on the screen and most of them are baseless. **Firstly:** Draconis in no way or form represents the Siege Perilous. Most people don't even know what that is! Going on that vein, the seats of the Round Table have nothing to do with the symbols of the Zodiac. Where did you get that? Arthurian legend in one earlier iteration states that King Arthur created the Round Table because he didn't want his nobles and dukes arguing at the table over positioning at gatherings. Siege Perilous wasn't mentioned in that iteration. Also Draconis was stated clearly and multiple times that he did not belong to either Avalon OR Ainz Ooal Gown, but his own guild for the sake of having his own private Dungeon HQ due to the game's rules. Therefore, he cannot have an official seat at either guild. He is a guest with honors. **Secondly:** I never wrote in that he cast the Tier X spell [ _Whispers of the Tavern_ ] to enchant the table of his home's dining chambers. Have you never played an MMO-RPG? Item creation and TRADING and PLAYER MARKETS in game are a thing. He doesn't need to cast a Tier X spell cause he didn't and it never says he did. How do you come to the conclusion that he was the one that did and then say there is no way for him to cast Tier X? He's a DRAGON racial character. Dragons are natural casters of Arcane magic anyway. His racial age progression and prestige lets him get away with quite a bit, even limited as it may be in terms of his overall spell pool, but Tier X? He's got them. Dragons are powerful monsters in YGGDRASIL and Ainz fears there power due to experiences with them before the events of the New World. **Finally:** Were do you get that Akame ga Kill is an apology to a satanic reversal Holy Grail quest?! What? I don't even . . . You can not like a series or the characters I pay tribute to. That's fine. But that's just ludicrous. You're PMs and reviews are appreciated if they help me in the story's progression and content, but this kinda stuff is your personal ravings.

 ** _"The problem in that story's concept is that the Twelve (best) Knights of the Round Table are meant to represent the Zodiac, and the Table itself (and eventually the room completing it) a Mandala, a depiction of th Cosmos (of course, it is nevr portrayed properly on tv). When you see a "Twelve" something in Mythology and Symbolism, it is almost always about that. If you look at it carefully, you shall see that Maruyama Kugane is conspiring to put clues through such inuendos, hidden things weaved in his story, maybe clues to explain what happened to Momonga and Yggdrasil, and why how they came into Vinland."_**

I don't think Maruyama-san going quite that deep sir. And no it's normally not. 12 is a number used in a plethora of mathematical equations and calculations because it is a solid configurable number. I think you'll be surprised at how many people just use 12 b/c it is convenient rather than using zodiac symbolism.

 _ **"Also, speaking of distateful stuff, having a gender bending Sir Artorias usurp Apollo is almost on the level of the French Presidents using Chambord and Versailles as secondary residences. :p"**_

The hell does Apollo have to do with King Arthur? Draconis's player and his wife play an online game and she makes a female character and names it a feminine Arthur in tribute and respect of a tragic hero from myth and folklore that she loves. Where the hell does this come from? I AM CONFUSED! .

ANYWAY! If any of all Tomosada's stuff even remotes makes sense to you readers PLEASE let me know. Regardless. Thanks for your time and reviews! Have fun!

MERRY CHRISTMAS or HAPPY HOLIDAYS. I should have another chapter out shortly after New Year's Day!


	5. Chapter 4 The Queen and the Emissary

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Maruyama Kugane and licensed by YenPress. Support the official book releases!**

 **I hope everyone had a Happy Holidays and enjoyed a bit of time with family where appropriate. It's a bit before the New Year, but I found myself with a surprising amount of free time during this Holiday Season.**

 **That being said, having read a number of Overlord fics myself, I write Draconis and his friends with several things in mind.**

 **1) OP is fun EVERY NOW and THEN, let's go ahead and get that out of the way. It is, a lot of gamers can agree with this feeling. However, steamrolling and one sided victories and beatdowns get IMMENSELY stale after a short time. It is due to this that I and I hope that many of our fellow fans of Overlord, believe that if the series wants to stay strong, a new force that can actually competently threaten Ainz Ooal Gown's ambitions and power level become prevalent. Unfortunately, this has yet to even become a thing in the LNs. Thus Draconis and his friends in Avalon. That being said, there will be times where they will be oddly supportive of him and even help. They are all still players in the end, though morality and their avatar's alignments will also play a large role in opposing or helping.**

 **2) Draconis and Artorias are very conscientious people and care about how others view them and how their actions affect more than just themselves for better or worse, something I think that Ainz does not as far as how it affects others. His incompetence is showing every time Demiurge or Albedo make certain moves or word plays. It is this negative affliction of Satoru Suzuki that will be addressed in the fic. So while being OP power wise, Artorias and Draconis don't like revealing it; unlike Ainz. Part of that is in LARGE part to the info wars that YGGDRASIL had. It's become a part of their lives and is not something that they would change easily.**

 **3) My largest gripe? Killing FAR too many interesting characters of the New World. I get some of them, and a few of them are thematically appropriate, but others were just downright cringe worthy. Don't expect Draconis or Artorias to save everyone, heck they may kill a few themselves, but it would be for more tangible and believable reasons other than, "Uh, I can't think of why they'd still be useful. Do what you want Demiurge . . . "**

 **Anyway! Enough of my ranting. Agree with me? Not so much? Have your own opinions on the topics I just went over? Read and Review!**

 **Review responses and character profile at the end of the chapter as per usual!**

 **Was listening to Super Eurobeat mixes the whole time writing this one.**

* * *

 **Chapter 4: The Queen and The Emissary**

* * *

Draudillon Oriculus sat in her throne with a glass of wine inn her hand. An empty bottle of the spirit sat tipped over at the foot of it. She wore a foul expression that clashed horribly with the appearance of a little girl. Swishing the dark maroon liquid around a bit before tipping the glass to her lips, she silently cursed the pedophiles that surrounded her. She was the Dark Scale Dragon Lord, 8th blooded as she was, she still had dragon's blood dammit!

She genuinely lamented the fact that she was unable to properly provide for her people and aide them as a ruler should. Her father and mother had left her in a horrible position when she inherited the throne after Brightness Dragon Lord went into seclusion gods knew where. What had she done to deserve this? Setting the glass down on the small side table, she muttered a few words and frowned.

Their kindom only had Crystal Tear as the single adamantite adventurer group in the nation. It wasn't like they didn't do their jobs in fighting off beastmen, but one group no matter how poerful could only do so much. A rapidly approaching set of footsteps alerted her to the incoming visitor. The doors burst open with a bewildered Prime Minister and his guardsmen with a messenger in tow.

"Your Majesty! We've a new report!"

She gave them all an odd look. Why would they get all excited? Much less why was this messenger so adamant?

 _More pedophiles?_

"Your Majesty! One Aarik of Tildeus sends tidings of a man with powerful associates who utterly annihilated a beastmen raid on the village. He spoke of the man in glowing praise, stating that he fought with spell and sword that defy the normal."

That was interesting, rumors were common, but stating that an entire beastmen raid group had no been driven off, but utterly destroyed were quite another matter. Either this Aarik was drunk off his seat or said event truly occurred. If that was actually the case then she couldn't just wave it off. The kingdom was suffering terribly and on the verge of collapse. Sshe couldn't be stingy when the kingdom could only hold claim to a single adamantite class adventurer's group.

Still, she had suspicions and would be remiss to not address them.

"Does this Aarik of Tildeus know how many numbered the raiders?"

"Over sixty your Majesty!"

Draudillon had been taking a drink of her wine and promptly spat it out as she coughed. Thankfully she had enough grace to spit it out to the side. Coughing roughly, she glared at the messenger.

"What?! This had better not be a trick!"

The Prime Minister also had a doubtful expression on his face.

"Indeed! Do you really think it so desperate a situation that her Majesty, the young and pure Dragon Lord Oriculus a fool to accept such outlandish claims?!"

The messenger cowed under the glares, but remained firm. He knelt on bended knee with a scroll in his hands. An odd, pure white wax seal was affixed to it.

"No you Majesty, but this was sent as well! They claim that this newcomer that Aarik mentioned made the scroll himself and used his personal seal. It is further protected from tampering with magic. The deliverer stated that it would only break if one of dragon blood touches the seal."

Still rather skeptical, Draudillon motioned the man forward and took the scroll from him. Looking it over, she could not recognize the seal. Yet it was so intricate that it couldn't possibly been forged by an amateur. A dragon face of a type she had never seen before seemed to stare into her very soul. Par of her blood, her draconic side screamed at her that it was true. She could feel the magic in the seal. She tapped the seal with her index finger and the seal crumbled to ash.

The scroll unraveled and levitated . . . hovered in the air before her and an image of an immaculately dressed and armored man appeared. She was captivated, never had she seen such a spell. The man bowed respectfully and gave a smile. His voice traveled through her being like warmed wine, rich and bold, yet soothing and confident.

" _Your Majesty, Dark Scale Dragon Lord Draudillon Oriculus of the Dragon Kingdom. I thank you humbly for your acceptance of this missive. This is the spell_ [Astral Recording] _which allows me to send you a message scroll such as this. For the sake of privacy and security, the rest of this message will be spoken in the ancient tongue of your kin."_

"What?!" The Prime Minister and his entourage and the messenger gawked at the sight before them. Never had anyone shown proficiency in such magics. Now he claimed to be able to speak the language of dragons? He looked no older than his early to mid-twenties! Yet when he spoke again Draudillon shocked them by standing with a hand over her mouth. They were stunned to silence when a tear formed in her eyes. The man in the mgacial missive was speaking a tongue that no one but their Queen could understand.

" _My name is Draconis Brightblade. I am known in some circles as The Emissary of the World Dragon Midgardsomr, and Knight Most Heavenly of Avalon. My home was suddenly transported forcibly to what I believe to be just inside your kingdoms's northwest mountain border. My vassals and I spied the village of Tildeus as Aarik calls it being raided by beastmen. I assure you that your citizens are battered, but whole. This particular group of bandits are no more."_

Draudillon mouthed his name and titles and swallowed, she had recognized the name of Midgardsomr and she had thought the myth among dragons just that, a myth. Even full blooded dragon lords that had survived the dark times of The Eight Greed Kings dismissed that name as conjecture rather than fact. Yet he stated that he was the First Sire's Emissary? What was Avalon? He was a Holy Knight of some kind, a warrior of faith?

" _I understand that all this is a lot to absorb and process in a short time, yet from what the village of Tildeus has informed me, you are in desperate times. I wish to extend a hand in succor and friendship. My vassals and I are woefully new to the area and quite disoriented, so I wish to establish good relations with the ruling body. You, your Majesty. Just state to the image before you now that you wish to speak with me and it will be so."_

The image remained quiet as it waited for her response. She was certain that it would send her answer directly to him in some manner, but how long would she have to wait for his response? She pinched herself to assure her mind that this was not a dream. The Prime Minister looked to her.

"Your Majesty, what did he say? Was the truly the language of dragons? Just say the word and we will rid you of this farce!"

"You will do nothing of the sort Prime Minister! He truly speaks my great-grandfather's tongue fluently. He knows Dragon Tongue."

She bit her lip and pondered over the choices before her. This was one of those times that she wished that Brightness Dragon Lord . . . her great-grandfather hadn't just gone and hid himself who knows where.

The key information that made her believe this statements was actually a lack of certain phrases and words. There was no flattery. The names and titles were a formality that she herself would use when addressing others of equal station. It was business at the royal level. There was appeasement in the assurance that a village under her protection had been aided at risk of his own life and that of his vassals, who ever they were. It was succinct and to the point. An offer of help in exchange for help of her own was given plainly. This was a clear case of "you help me, I help you". No money was mentioned either.

Then there was the manner in which this whole situation was playing out. A spell she had never even heard of was being used right in front of her with witnesses present! She could feel its power in her blood. It was divine magic with hints of justice! So claim of Knight Most Heavenly Knight didn't seem too far fetched.

 _I need true help and aide. We can't keep this up, the tributes to the Slane Thoecracy with no help to show for it recently in brutal. The Baharuth Empire only sends a token force because they know that they are next once we fall. Re-Estize is too far away to render aide and our economy is utterly spent. If all he desires is information then it is a bargain. To invoke Midgardsomr's name as well is to tempt the wrath of the gods should he be lying. The choice is obvious._

In Dragon Tongue, she responded to the message at last.

"I wish to speak with you Draconis Brightblade. Please come to see me as you are able."

The image smiled and nodded once before bowing. The scroll dissipated and nothing was left to hit the ground. A sudden consternation from the guards outside the throne room doors drew their attention and Draudillon found herself gawking with the rest of those present.

 _No . . . no that cannot be! Was he here all along?"_

"Hey! Identify youself! You can't go in there?!"

Even without being a full blooded dragon, she had one trait that all dragon kind possessed. Treasure Sense. The inherent ability to feel and know the value and power of precious metals, gemstones, weapons, and magical items. Even at a distance or out of sight, dragon kind were exceptionally good at identifying the presence of valuables. Even through the doors of the throne room, the scent of powerful magical items and finery beyond compare assaulted her senses. Draudillon didn't have a greedy streak in her, but even she found herself in utter awe of what she felt through the doors. There was no way that this presence she felt beyond those sturdy doors was not the man calling himself Draconis Brightblade.

"Let that one through!" Her young voice boomed in the chamber, shocking those inside and out. "He is my invited guest!"

There was a brief moment of silence before the doors creaked open. It took all of her fortitude to not drop to her knees on the floor at the magical assault that battered her draconic senses. He didn't just bear magic items; but was wreathed in them!

"Guh!" She staggered back into her throne and sat a bit stupefied. The crimson haired man before her seemed to realize what had happened as his eyes widened in comprehension. He took a ring from his pocket and placed it on his right index finger before speaking a soft word of command. The magical auras that swirled about him like a storm snuffed out completely. Her jaw dropped open. An item that completely and utterly negated his magic auras? Auras so powerful that if another mage had been present they would surely have passed out?

A soft smile and apologetic bow preceded his words.

"I am sorry for the magical sensory overload your Majesty. I forgot that you have the draconic ability to sense magical items, treasure, and finery. I trust this will make things a bit more bearable?"

She came to the realization of why he hadn't asked for monetary compensation. There was no way that she would be able to, and he didn't need such a thing if he was in possession of so many powerful magic items. Just being in his presence that short moment had told her all she needed to know. How could he not utterly crush a beastman reaider group with such powerful equipment? Was he alone though? Were there others like him? Similarly outfitted?

"No, that is alright. But if you knew that, then you are knowledgeable of dragon kind?"

A smile from him revealed a larger incisor than what was acceptable for a human. The guards of the Prime Minister drew steel.

"Monster! Protect the Queen!" She looked at them aghast, had they lost their sense?! Before she could say anything in reproach, one of them swung at him with his sword.

The result was nothing like any of them had seen. A blade had shot from his shadow and intercepted the attack. What came next made Draudillon back into her throne a bit. A woman with raven black hair and blood crimson eyes rose from the same shadow with the blade in hand. Its make alone left a feeling of ill foreboding. A katana; and this woman who was a guard to the man before them did not have anything guarding her own aura.

She was not as powerful as the man, but she was still beyond anything Draudillon could imagine. She wielded a katana; an item brought to the world by the Six Great Gods and renowned for its superiority over most swords. And it was _Magic_. A magical katana! What kind of wealth did they possess to attain such a thing? Then she looked closer and swallowed.

 _No . . . not one, but three?!_

Two additional blades remained in scabbards at her hip. Their magic radiated softly, but powerfully as if steeping in power while waiting to be unleashed. There was another factor that made her wonder about the man before her.

 _What is . . . she isn't human. A dark presence, and this aura surrounding her is dulled but still sinister . . . a demon? A devil? He commands her loyalty? His aura was good and holy before he placed that ring on his finger . . . did he subjugate her?_

"I can see our guards are zealous to defend you. Akame, stand down. I thank you for your vigilance. Please stand by the doors."

The woman . . . Akame? Disengaged her weapon and sheathed it as she turned to face him. She nodded once respectfully and then moved to the throne room doors. Despite the quiet in the chambers, not a step was heard. It was chilling and telling. The cloak she wore swirled of darkness and shadows and her overall ensemble was black, yet held tailoring that none of them had ever beheld. Given the manner which she had defended, it wasn't hard to imagine the opposite, an assault form his shadow . . . or your own. The technique of an assassin.

"Guards! Stand down! He is a guest invited by my own volition; would you mock my hospitality?"

The men seemed to realize what they had just done and paled. However, the Prime Minister wasn't buying it.

"This man brings an assassin into the throne room of your Majesty!"

"Who also did nothing but guard him when your man attacked him in panic! What use are guards who cannot have enough self discipline to hold themselves when the unexpected happens? I make an inquiry of him and when he smiles you attack him?!" She turned to her guest. "Sir Draconis Brightlbade, I must beg forgiveness for my advisor's men."

He chuckled in good humor. When she gazed at him, his body language spoke volumes. Like he had faced situations like this a thousand times over. A tried and true veteran.

"It is quite alright you Majesty. Though I may not look it, I am indeed not human. This is my most favored form. Though I beg a question if allowed. That is not your true form either?"

She smiled, her first of the meeting.

 _Ask me! Ask me to show you and I'll finally be able to rid myself of this damned child's charade!_

"You dare?!"

The Prime Minister interrupted red in the face. Draconis looked at him expectantly.

"You dare suggest that our wondrous queen, who needs the protection of her subjects reveal her true nature? How dare you!"

"What?" Was Draconis's dry response. His expression clearly asked _Are you serious?_

"You cannot say that her innocent and pure form does not move you to assist and protect her with your very being!"

A look of absolute disgust crossed the man's features as it dawned on him what the Prime Minister was saying. This was new . . . as much as she wanted to rebuke the Prime Minister, she also wanted to hear her guest's answer.

"Anyone with any sort of moral compass would understand the value of a child's life, but your Queen is no child! She is your Queen and a woman grown! Instead of fawning over a fantasy . . . wait . . . a fantasy? Are you . . . ?! [ _Zone of Truth_ ]!"

Draconis glared as he cast the Justice typed spell. The surrounding area burst into a set of glowing runes and glyphs. [ _Zone of Truth_ ] was used by priests and other religious figures in ascertaining information and rendering judgments. It was a Tier II spell and relatively common at temples and any place that an actual judiciary body was present. Seeing the elegantly armored man before them cast the spell without any effort and instantly drew gasps.

"Are you a pedophile?" There was a hardness to Draconis's eyes that pierced all present. It was as if he was ready to rend any who answered in the affirmative to pieces.

"Y-yes."

She half expected him to be cut down the moment he answered, but instead she was surprised to see him turn his attention to her. The hardness in his eyes did not wane and she could see the fury in his irises. Her stomach leaped to her throat as she saw it . . . vertically slit pupils and prismatic eyes. Ancient power hidden behind the form of a human.

"You allow a man like this to be your advisor?"

She spoke confidently, knowing full well that she was in the magic's area of effect.

"I rather hate this form. But given the number of people who prefer me this way, it makes it easier to get some of them to follow orders despite our desperate situation. I take no enjoyment of it and find it rather disgusting, but for my people, I must do what I can, even if I loathe it."

It was true. How often had she felt the need to cleanse herself or drink herself into a stupor in order to play the needy, innocent child act with the way they lustfully looked at her in the form of a barely teenage girl?

Draconis nodded grimly and dispelled his magic. An expression of tired understanding crossed his face.

"That is something I too often encounter with those in power. You have my sympathy and respect for placing the needs of your nation above your own. However, for my sanity your Majesty, please release this form of yours. I rather prefer dealing with people as they are. I apologize in advance for I cannot do the same as it is not practical within these chambers."

She nodded an her opinion of this man rose several notches. He obviously was not a man with those kinds of fetishes. How long had it been since she had the opportunity and freedom to be as she really was? Curiosity drove her to question him before she released her child form. She just had to confirm her own theory.

"I shall do so, but I would request one thing of you before hand. Are you of dragon heritage as well?"

He laughed richly. The peals of laughter filled the chamber. It was not mocking or condescending, but genuinely amused.

"Was it my eyes?" He asked as his laughter died down. "That seems to be one of the few things I cannot cover with magic, and I rather dislike masks. Yes, I am of dragon blood."

 _So he_ is _dragon blooded! An adventurer with dragon blood . . . wait, where is his plate? Don't tell me that he's a Worker?!_

"Tell me Sir Brightblade, are you a Worker? I see no Adventurer's plate of rank on you."

A curious expression crossed his features as did a genuine look of confusion.

"I must apologize for my ignorance, but what is the difference between the two? Ranks? Something akin to a private militia? 'Worker' is a term that I have for the fist time since arriving here. As I stated in my missive, we require information for we are quite displaced."

The Prime Minister and several others gawked at him. Pointing a finger at him, he gnashed his teeth.

"You lie! How can one not know of the Adventurer's Guild and Workers!? Who are you for truth?"

The guards with him were of similar mindset, but after Akame had blocked one of their attacks with a katana, none of them were inclined to push their luck. Katana wielders were notorious for their skills and lethality. No one wanted to risk a person who made no noise whatsoever and possessed not one, but three blades.

"As your Queen stated, I am Draconis Brightblade. I am a Knight Most Heavenly of the Queendom of Avalon. In the queendom, we have no system of adventurers formally and as I also stated previously, 'Workers' is not a term we are familiar with."

"Avalon? No such place exists!"

"Prime Minister! That is enough! Will you continue to mock my guest? I can assure you that he has communicated his situation to me with my ancestor's own tongue. I will not contain my displeasure much longer."

Her voice was deadly calm and low as she glared at him. He flinched as her eyes took on a dim glow through slit eyelids.

"Please Queen Draudillon, I can understand his concerns. They are valid ones. He is pushing the pestering a bit, but I can see where he comes from. Shall we continue this elsewhere or shall we remain here in the throne room?"

She sighed and reverted to her true form. The curvaceous body she was more comfortable with relaxed in her throne. The guards were stunned. This was their queen's true form? The Prime Minister grimaced.

"Sire Brightblade, that would depend on what would be more comfortable for you. You are my guest and have done my people a great service. Have you taken supper?"

"I have not your Majesty, but I should not impose. Your nation is under duress as it is. I should not press for luxuries that can be ill afforded."

 _Hmm . . . respectful and honest, yet smooth and pragmatic in his refusal. He's good. Obviously well acquainted with dealing in the political sphere. If this Avalon is truly his home, then is he a commander of Knights?_

"I must insist Sir Brightblade. You are correct in your assumption, but supper is nigh regardless."

He bowed in deference to her words.

"Then I shall be honored to exchange words over supper. Your are most gracious."

She nodded with a renewed vigor that she hadn't felt in ages. She turned to the Prime Minister who stared at her in stunned silence.

"Prime Minister, inform the chefs that I have a guest of honor joining me for supper and to prepare for two . . . three?" She looked meaningfully toward Draconis. The man was sharp as he subtly looked toward his bodyguard over his shoulder. She shook her head negatively. Draudillon had her answer. "Two. Cancel any other appointments I have for the day."

"Uh . . .wha?!" He sputtered before sobering up and grimly nodding. Something about his posture told her that he was displeased and outraged, but controlled himself. She personally couldn't care less. An opportunity had been presented to her like no other and she would consider herself an absolute fool not to make the most of the situation.

The Prime Minister hurried out of the throne room with his retinue close behind. As the doors shut, she looked to her guest with a tired gesture.

"I apologize again for his behavior." Draconis smiled with understanding and waved a hand in dismissive gestures.

"It is fine. Once again, I can understand his view of the situation, though I must level with you your Majesty. I rather despise pedophiles. It is sick and depraved."

Draudillon rejoiced internally!

 _Thank the gods! A person I can relate with! He is of dragon blood and a tactful speaker. How long as it been since I spoke with a reasonable person? I fear that I've forgotten._

Draudillon Oriculus smiled openly for the first time in a very long while. Supper was looking to be an enjoyable affair tonight.

* * *

 **Castle Hallways**

* * *

Meanwhile the Prime Minister hurried down the halls of the austere castle with a furious look about him. His guards followed at a slight distance and were tense. The man bit a thumbnail in frustration.

What happened in that whirlwind chain of events? Tildeus came under assault and then this man ust suddenly appears and takes care of the whole band of raiders? Tildeus was over a week on horseback from the capital! There was no way that he made that journey to match the messenger!

 _Who the hell is this Brightblade conman? I need to gather information on that man and this supposed Avalon. Her Majesty is under his enchantments! That's it! I must contact Crystal Tear at once!_

He would follow orders and have the chefs prepare supper. It would be the last royal supper that this Draconis Brightblade swindler would ever have!

Entering into the kitchens, he relayed Queen Draudillon's orders, shocking the assembled staff in the process. Then he wasted no time in making his way to his chambers. Swiftly changing to something more fitting for outdoor travel, he planned to make his way to the Grand Cathedral. He would pay for the Cardinal to divine that this Avalon was fictional and then gather Crystal Tear to apprehend the man. The woman with the katanas told him that only orichalcum or adamantite class adventurers would be able to apprehend him and his guard without losses should it come to a fight.

As he left the confines of the castle without his guardsmen, he wrinkled his nose at the slightly soured air.

The streets were dirt and uneven cobblestones. The financial duress the kingdom was under severely affected the maintenance and repairs for the nation as a whole. Even the capital had not been spared. The supposed Noble Quarter of the city seemed rundown and the people as a nation had learned to become very frugal. Wealth meant nothing in the face of beastmen raiders. Even adventurer parties were not paid well enough unless directly employed by the Queen.

It was the only exception that the Adventurer's Guild had made in regards to their usual rules of not getting involved in political affairs. If the kingdom fell, so would the guild and all those who depended on them. The times were that extreme. Even the church and rules of healing had been made lax due to the condition of the nation against the beastmen. Creatures of sentience who cared not for money or standing and civility. Only food, humans . . . as meat and skin and bone like some deer or bison.

Even if employed by the Queen via the Guild, the demand to the number of available surviving adventurer teams was not enough. Thus they had been forced to plead both the Baharuth Empire and the Slane Theocracy for aide. They were forced to pay backbreaking costs and the toll was whithering them to dust.

Making his way the best he could, he beelined straight for the Grand Cathedral. Poor children in rags piteously looked to those passing by even for crumbs and scraps. Occassionally a kind hearted soul would help them, but it wasn't enough. Though the people had begun to care for one another despite their classes, a division remained and what little could be saved; usually was. Those who could fled the nation to the Slane Theocracy or the Empire, but the majority would never make it. Found and killed as food by roving bands of beastmen and even if they did make it, they were turned away due to their own nation's concerns. The beastmen would find these tragic travelers and kill them. Sometimes it would happen within sight of the border guards. None of them lifted a hand to aide them. How could they? They were not their countrymen and even though many thought to do so, the risk to their own border defense's strength could not be risked.

Thus was the state of the Kingdom. A dire, suffering nation that was losing all hope.

The Prime Minister was no fool and not blind enough to not see the suffering of his fellow countrymen, but the Queen came first!

Arriving at the Grand Cathedral, he bowed before the priests and priestesses at the entrance. Even though he was not particularly religious, disrespecting the temple and those of the faith was extremely audacious an invited karmic wrath. Temple guards and enforcers were at least mithril ranked and thus were not to be trifled with. Even so, many of them died to raiders in the most heinous of fashions. The priestesses were the most defiled if caught. Many of them had resolved and even carried out suicides before being taken, preferring death to defilement at the hands of beastmen. He did not begrudge them the practice.

"Prime Minister, it is rare to see you come to the temple outside of your usual schedule."

He looked to the source of the voice. A man of good standing in the temple and one of the elders. He was a simply dressed man. A white robe with a simple violet sash from shoulder to waist was a sign of his station. Some would have thought him of lesser standing, but the staff he carried immediately negated that train of thought. He was the cardinal of the temple.

"Ah, Father Yoland. True, this is too true. Ah . . . might we speak in private? I have come seeking advice and the topic is a bit sensitive."

Father Yoland had served the temples of the Dragon Kingdom for quite some time. There were few who could match his religious knowledge and faith. Yoland simply nodded and motioned to a separate room. He dropped his voice as they exchanged basic pleasantries.

Upon entering the side chamber, both men took a seat opposite of each other. There was a small table with a pitcher of fresh water and a pair of treated clay cups. The condensation around the pitcher spoke of the cold temperature the water was at. An enchanted item which kept its contents cold.

Yoland poured the Prime Minister a cup of the water and the man took it graciously. Taking a draft of the cold liquid, he sighed in content before placing the cup back and taking on a serious air.

"Our Queen has taken in a guest and is entertaining him over supper as we speak."

Father Yoland tilted his head in interest. It was rare to hear of such a thing anymore. Why would her guest spark such concern?

"He claims to have stopped Tildeus from falling to beastmen raiders, but the land which he claims to hail from is not known to us. He also knew things about the Queen that most should not."

Yoland was a bit confused by that point. Was it something salacious? Dangerous?

"I trust this is not something of hers that is personal?"

"No, it is him! He had a bodyguard who is an assassin!"

"Assassin? Are you certain?"

"She came out of his own shadow! Her cloak exudes darkness like it is a living creature of the abyss!"

Father Yoland was a man entering his later years. Divine magic and his faith had allowed him to exceed his normal limitations. He had not lived to be the age of 153 years and not learned of political machinations and under informed conclusions. Something about this whole situation seemed off.

"Prime Minister, I beg pardon if things of the court have drastically changed, but it would seem to me to be counterproductive to enter into her Majesty's presence with an assassin out in the open. What happened during this meeting. If she is treating him to supper then surely he made a good impression on her yes?"

The Prime Minister choked a bit before speaking. It was a telling sign that Yoland kept to himself.

"My guardsmen and I beheld his inhuman nature. He has fangs and slit pupils. They rose to the defense and this assassin burst forth!"

"Were they killed?"

"No, but who lets someone like that be their guard?"

Yoland grew apprehensive about this conversation.

"You claim this guest as inhuman. Did our Queen ask his origin?"

"He claims to be of dragon blood."

Yoland tensed. Another of dragon blood was meeting with Queen Draudillon? What did this portend? Had another dragon seen their plight and sent aide? Was it a play for power due to her desperate situation?

 _I may agree to his request out of my own curiosity and conjecture. Though if it is true then why would he care? Dragon kind has always been aloof and fit to attend to whatever catches their interests._

"I see . . . that is quite the claim Prime Minister. Do you know the name of this man and his guard?"

"He called her Akame. Her Majesty said that his name was Draconis Brightblade. He mentioned that he supposedly hails from Avalon – some kind of Queendom."

 _Hm? Akame and Draconis. But to take a name so closely remnant of the very word 'dragon' is not something done lightly. I sense something more here. Acquiring the name of his homeland is a boon though. Perhaps this Draconis fellow is simply being sincere?_

He could see the way that the Prime Minister was grinding his teeth. Yoland frowned. Something in his aging bones told him that the Prime Minister was getting into something over his head. Not many could claim that they emerged victorious against a raid of beastmen, much less be of dragon blood.

"Very well Prime Minister. I will look into this man and his land of origin. Shall I send a runner for you once I have uncovered something?"

The man before him wiped a thin veneer of sweat from his brow with a handkerchief as he nodded repeatedly like a water duck toy. Inwardly, Yoland found the gesture off putting.

"That would be best. I will make my way back to the palace now and prepare to contact Crystal Tear to stand by. I will not take half measures against anyone plotting against our Queen."

Yoland nodded, but deep down he sneered at the heavier set man.

 _Truly? Our kingdom's only adamantite team and you want them to move on this man? If he is of dragon blood then it would be a waste of manpower best used elsewhere. Never mind that I cannot tolerate that Cerebrate cad._

The two men shook hands and stepped out of the room Neither of them noticed that under the table they had stood from, the shadow underneath rippled for a moment before smoothing over.

* * *

 **Draudillon's Dining Chambers**

* * *

Savory scents accompanied quietly clicking utensils and conversation between the Queen of the Dragon Kingdom and her guest. The maid an dbutler who were privileged with serving the two seated occupants ensured that the glasses of drink and any extra needs were fulfilled without having to ask. Steaming and fire charred meats of various cuts – lamb chops, pot roast with moderate marbling, and half a roasted chicken for each of them - were served with steamed carrots and potatoes and other vegetables. Warm loaves of bread accompanied by honey still dripping from the comb sat in polished glass jars. Their amber sweetness an utter temptation in the kingdom's dire times. A single bottle of aged red wine was also shared between them.

Yet despite the obvious decadence, the portions were very moderated. The raids had hurt the nation as a whole. With it erupting into full blown invasion, meals like these were rare and even when they did occur, they were rationed fiercely.

Both diners ate leisurely, pacing themselves to enjoy the meal and talk. It was rare for their queen to personally dine with a guest without any of her retinue present as well. The chefs and other kitchen staff had grown into a frenzy at the prospect.

She was in a good . . . no . . . _elated_ mood! The two servants had entered the kitchens in shock. She was smiling! Her child like form abandoned like the wind as well. The Queen . . . the Dark Scale Dragon Lord was laughing in good spirits! It was unheard of. So rare was this event that all staff involved had rallied to give her their utmost.

The man she conversed with was unlike any they had ever seen. He was tall, easily standing above most other men by several inches. He had blazing crimson hair that – while windblown and wild – suited him better than slicked back or well combed styles. In spite of that, he bore a regal aura about him that made any present take note of their own posture and bearing.

He had not removed his armor, yet so little noise was made as he moved about that they found it hard not to believe that it was not an illusion of some kind. It seemed as if the man glided around the room with a languid grace akin to a wild cat. When he had taken his seat, their had been the mere fraction of sound, so the armor was quite real.

And what craftsmanship he wore! His entire ensemble was elegant and artistic, yet somehow believably functional. At first they had wondered if he was wearing some kind of immaculately polished and maintained silver armor, but closer interaction when serving his food and drink had revealed that it was even rarer. Both wait staffers had exchanged subtle, yet shocked glances between each other in passing. Platinum? The luster was something the two of them had never seen before.

The raiment that accentuated his armor and clothed him where armor did not cover was woven from materials they'd not seen or heard of. Yet curiosity only went so far as the room's final occupant set both of them on edge.

The raven haired beauty that had entered in behind the queen's guest was equally well dressed, but in an almost eerie and sinister fashion. Her dark crimson eyes didn't help the image either. When their guest had asked her if she desired to eat with them, she had quietly refused and taken up a position by the main doors like a sentry. Those deep crimson orbs seemed to take in the whole room without having to move. This woman had remained silent towards them, but had not shown them any rudeness. She merely watched their interactions with a hawk-like vision and even though she showed no signs of tension, the both felt that this bodyguard could pounce on them like some wild, maddened wolf if they did anything that could be construed as threatening to the man she attended.

Draudillon took a sip of her wine and set down her utensil for a moment to continue their conversation.

"So you and your retinue believe to be the victims of a [ _Teleport_ ] gone awry?"

Draconis also placed his utensils down and wiped his mouth with the cloth mapkin before answering.

"Yes your Majesty. I know where my stronghold is in relation to this place, but all of the surrounding area of your kingdom and its neighbors is unknown to me. That lack of knowledge is dangerous even during peace. How remiss would I be to ignore it during turbulent times?"

She nodded in agreement. Though she did wonder about his wording.

 _Stronghold? Not his home?_

"I can whole heartedly understand that sentiment Sire Brightblade. Tell me something though. How many of you were there in the defense of Tildeus? Taking on a raiding band like those savages put together could not have been a simple matter."

He frowned but answered.

"Though I had my reserves in the area as a fall back plan, I only deployed myself and two others to deal with the initial raiders on the village of Tildeus. The following band of reinforcements were faced by Akame," he motioned to his left at the raven haired woman who bowed in acknowledgement, "and her sister Kurome along with my tactician Cecilia. Our ranger and trailblazer Luserina rounded out their party. We left only their band's leader and three others alive for questioning."

That made her mouth dry out even with the wine she sipped on. Setting her glass down, she frowned in thought.

 _Assuming those two who helped him at the beginning of their intervention are not that Akame girl and her sister or this tactician and their ranger . . . then . . . seven? Only seven?_

"Seven of you? Forgive me Sir Brightblade, but raiding bands vary in number and so I must ask. How large was the band of raiders?"

"Sixty, including the leader. However there was a saber-tooth tiger like beastman with a guard of fifteen silver-back ape-men. They called the saber-tooth an Alpha."

The servants gasped and Draudillon paled a bit. An Alpha so far in and northwest of the capital? Were they going for a pincer maneuver?

 _Sixty beastmen along with an Alpha and its guard? A worst case scenario even for adventurers of high ranking. It would take unmatched power and skill to best that many. Never mind an Alpha! He must be a commander of knights for his home of Avalon. Likewise, each of his subordinates must be of at least orichalcum rank at the absolute least._

"Seven against seventy-six and all of them but the leader of the first band and three others were felled? I assume the Alpha was one of those taken alive? Pray forgive me the morbid question, but who is left besides yourself and Lady Akame?"

 _Surely against those odds, they must have taken wounded at the minimum, but what of their dead?_

"All of us."

"Eh?" Draudillon looked at him in confusion. Did she mishear? Her butler and maid also looked at him as if they had misheard.

"We sustained no fatalities. Nor were there any wounds. The only healing performed were to the residents of the village after the initial raid defense. An utter rout."

 _EH?! Not even wounded?! Surely they drove the Alpha off and not killed him?_

"Judging from your expression your Majesty, what my retinue and I have done is highly unusual. Be that as it may, it is the truth. I slew the Alpha myself in single combat and one of my retainers slew his entire guard by herself. Hm? Pardon me a moment."

He paused and frowned a fraction as he seemed to focus on something else entirely. The man sighed and shook his head with a sadly amused smile. She was reeling with the revelation that he had engaged the Alpha and killed it by himself. Much less who ever his retainer was who killed fifteen on her own.

 _How powerful are the people under his command? An Alpha alone requires a full team of no less than orichalcum class adventurers. Even then the wounds they suffer takes more than just a few days to recover from even with healing!_

His voice brought her out from her thoughts.

"Forgive me Queen Draudillon. My retainer Kurome – Akame's younger sister has just informed me that your Prime Minister has been in touch with one Father Yoland to divine my identity and the truth of Avalon's existence."

She paled and felt a cold wind rush through her gut. Swallowing thickly, she could still feel his emotions and at the moment he felt frustrated, not that she could blame him.

 _Damn it Prime Minister! You might just have ruined our only chance to save the kingdom. You fool!_

"Sir Draconis, I . . ." His hand forestalled her from finishing her plea. Sweating a bit, she nodded as he smiled.

"Please, don't assume that I've taken offense with you. His actions are really rather predictable. Kurome and Akame are both my personal guards and perform their duties admirably."

He snapped his fingers and like her sister before her, another raven haired young woman materialized from the shadows beneath him and to his left. Her hair was notably shorter than her elder sister and her eyes were black as night. This one held a slightly more mischievous air about her, but he katana at her side promised that her skill was not to be trifled with. After materializing fully, much to the shock and fright of the maid and butler, she knelt on one knee and bowed her head respectfully.

"My Lord Draconis." Her voice was soft yet filled with respect. Draudillon found herself impressed that he commanded such respect from his guards, even if their natures somewhat disturbed her.

"Kurome. Firstly, well done in taking the initiative and reporting back to me. Now then, could you tell me what it was that was said?"

Draudillon saw Kurome stare at her from the corner of her eye. Her head didn't even move toward her. There was a stale air around the young girl that seemed to hover like a fog.

"The Queen?" Her question was obvious even if the whole thing was not mentioned. She wanted to know if it was okay that Draudillon was permitted to listen in.

"Hmph. That's fine Kurome. She should be allowed to know. It is her subject after all."

"Very well. The Prime Minister left the kitchens and proceeded to his chambers and switched outfits and made his way straight to the cathedral. One Father Yoland greeted him and they spoke in a separate room. He wanted the priest to divine your identity Lord Draconis. In addition he also wanted proof of the Queendom of Avalon's non existence and then convict you in some manner. He also mentioned something about a group called Crystal Tear in order to apprehend you and my sister."

Draudillon paled further and Draconis took notice of it, but said nothing. He nodded to Kurome for her to continue.

"However, Father Yoland appears to doubt the sincerity of the Prime Minister. He counter pointed a few of the Prime Minister's reasons, but agreed for what I believe is more a personal curiosity."

Draudillon could not remain silent any longer and spoke with urgency.

"Please do not harm Father Yoland. He is a good man and serves the gods. Surely as a Knight you would not harm a man of the cloth who is honorable?"

Draconis looked to her with hardened eyes. Their prismatic nature hit her hard and she found it hard not to flinch.

"I would prefer not not to. However, if he has already tried to divine my nature and Avalon itself, then there will be consequences. I don't care if he learns who I am. But I am not sure that the knowledge won't potentially kill him anyway. I am heavily warded by my own power and by my retainers. Avalon's Queen and her home are also heavily warded. What Tier of divination is the man capable of?"

She was confused, why would he want to know? Divination spells of faith only went to Tier IV. Still, Father Yoland was wizened in addition to being adept at such things.

"Tier IV."

"Then he may die if certain things are revealed. If you don't wish that upon him, I pray he has enough sense to acquiesce to the warnings he will receive trying to divine information. If not, then my defenses may end up killing him to protect me."

"S-such defensive spells exist?" She bit her lip as he nodded seriously.

"One of my defenses is called [ _Anti-Divination: Crippling Senses_ ]. It punishes a scrier with permanent blindness, deafness, and severe disorientation. Another is [ _Contingency Magic: Phantasmal Killer_ ] which summons a specter that preys on your greatest fears. If yo cannot withstand the mental onslaught, you will die. If you do withstand it, your attempt to divine still fails and you are wracked with so much mental and physical exhaustion, you will not be able to do anything for a whole day. However I have seen lesser opponents die from the exhaustion, so it is not pleasant to go up against."

 _What kind of anti-magic is this? I've never heard of such defenses!_ She swallowed hard.

"I've not ever heard of such powerful and terrifying defenses. What Tier are those?"

He quirked a brow and placed a thoughtful hand to his chin before answering her with a question of his own.

"Before I answer you, please tell me honestly. What is the highest Tier of magic humankind has been able to wield and how rare is it to find such individuals?"

"A talented magic caster who spends their career in their field of expertise can look to master Tier I and II spells. Though in truth only talented individuals can even attain Tier II."

He frowned. "Talented? You mean to say gifted?"

She nodded at his curious expression. It was as if he was learning the basics known to them for the first time.

"Mhmm. Those who can cast Tier II are talented numbering somewhere around 1 in 5000 or 1 in 10000 depending on the nation and region."

He choked on the wine he was sipping, nearly coughing his lungs out. Kurome immediately patted his back forcefully a few times until he stopped coughing. Why did he have such a reaction? Was he really so dense to the numbers?

"What of Tier III? IV?" His countenance was now rather apprehensive and she wondered about his sudden contriteness as he asked.

"Tier III is normally only seen by adventurers of at least Mithril rank and higher, though there are some rare exceptions. Tier IV is not seen by anyone who has not spent a lifetime of study and devotion and usually must possesses a special talent."

"Tier V? Tier VI?" His expression was getting desperate and she was beginning to worry.

"Only the legends from hundreds of years ago by the Six Great Gods, who brought Tier Magic to this world could wield Tier VI and Tier VII is the realm of the myths."

Draconis groaned mightily and buried his face in his hands. Losing a sense of decorum, he swore under his breath and ground his teeth. Akame and Kurome also seemed similarly distraught at her words.

Draconis looked to her with concern crossing his brow.

"You Majesty, I fear that my presence and that of Avalon with turn this world upon its head. Kurome, return to The Lair and inform Chronos that his priorities have changed. Find Avalon, find it fast, and let the Queen know what we have learned here. If we are not to stand out, then we must tread cautiously."

Kurome nodded and faded into shadow again. Draudillon swallowed at the implication of what his message to Avalon meant.

"You two. Leave us!" The butler and maid nervously looked to their liege and she nodded. The two left without a word and Draudillon braced herself. What was he capable of?

* * *

 **Draconis PoV**

* * *

 _What the hell is this?! Tier VII is the realm of mythology? That would mean Tier VIII and IX would be like a god or something! Forget Tier X and don't make mention of Super-Tier spells. Six Great Gods again . . . they introduced Tier Magic . . . could they have been Players like Artorias, Momonga, Lancelot, Mordred, Gareth, and I? Nevermind us, what of our NPCs at levels 60 and higher?_

This was bad! The whole power balance of this world was going to change just by their existence here. Just how would they go about living here? So much good could be done, but too much help resulted in a crutched society and dependent peoples. The balance was hard to walk. Nevermind that many of them were not playing human races.

Draudillon was looking at him with frightened realization dawning in her eyes.

"Your Majesty. I believe from what you have told me that something much larger is at play. I think that the gods are having a laugh at your peoples expense and sent us here to see what we will do."

"You can wield higher magics? Mythic magics?"

 _Do I tell her the truth? Lie? Play it off? I'd rather not start a new religion thank you . . ._

"Like your tales of old your Majesty, certain powers are at play. Though in order to understand what can or rather should be used, I needed to know what the rest of the world is capable of to an extent. There is a saying, 'ignorance is bliss'. Are you sure you wish to know?"

Draudillon swallowed thickly. He could tell that she was contemplating it.

"I think that I would rather know at the onset. Rather than discovering it later at a poor moment."

He stared hard into her eyes and saw that she was set. There was an iron will there that he could feel and part of it reminded him of his old military comrades during the war.

"Very well. In respect to your resolve and responsibility you shoulder for your people. I am capable of Tier X magic. As are others who arrived here with me."

"I I-I see . . . Tier X . . . A god . . ." Her voice was almost impossibly soft and had it not been for his draconic senses, he never would have heard the awed reverence in her words.

"No your Majesty. Not a god. Just powerful. Overwhelmingly so for your world and its people. But such power creates upheavals that affect everyone. I've seen and been among powers like these as they both help and destroy in equal measure. Those caught up in the conflicts of such entities always suffer. We can do incredible good for those around us, but we are no different than you. We can do great goods and evils with rational and irrational choices. We aren't gods, just immensely powerful and some greater power has decided to drop us into your lives whether you like it or not. Question is . . . do you want that?"

Draudillon was about to answer him when a commotion came from the doorways and a man burst through with no preamble or tact.

"Your Majesty! Where is this conman who has entranced you so?!"

* * *

 **And so enters . . . guess whoooo?**

* * *

 **Character Profile 4**

* * *

 **Luserina**

 **Humanoid (Elf)**

 **Position:** Ranger and Trailblazer of The Lair

 **Residence:** The Lair (Private Chambers)

 **Alignment:** Neutral (100 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** N/A Humanoid

 **Class Levels:** Ranger = 15 lvs.; Gunner = 15 lvs.; Shooter = 10 lvs.; Sniper = 5 lvs.; Monk = 15 lvs.; Zen Gunner = 10 lvs.; Grammaton Cleric = 5 lvs.; Gun Valkyrie = 15 lvs.; Aerial Ace = 5 lvs.; Bullet Storm = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 (Class Levels 100)

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 70

 **MP:** 35

 **Physical Attack:** 70

 **Physical Defense:** 40

 **Dexterity:** 95

 **Magical Attack:** 30

 **Magical Defense:** 50

 **Resistances:** 65

 **Special:** 80

* * *

 **On to the Review Responses!**

* * *

 **PervySageChuck:** Bring it on! *Grabs tar and feathers for the top of the battlements. I got this! Glad to see you're enjoying it. Good to have you onboard for the ride.

 **RyuujiVantek:** She'll be featured soon, probably within the next chapter or two. Glad to see you looking forward to future interactions.

 **solarblaster:** Perhaps . . . perhaps not . . . keep with us to find out.

 **Heika (Guest):** Luserina is not a vegetarian, she just doesn't eat red meats often. She will eat red meats and whatever will provide sustenance within reason. I can understand your "beef" with those kinds of "Vegetarians". Thanks for reading! Keep reviewing please! XD

 **MadDan90:** I do understand that sentiment quite well. They will reunite again and who knows, a kid might come about. It depends on my whimsy. Good luck on whatever it is you are working on. Let me know when you get it going.

* * *

 **Well, that's another chapter down! Have a good last bit of the year!**


	6. Chapter 5 Holy Lord vs KMH Draconis

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress. Please support the official releases.**

 **HAPPY NEW YEAR to all readers regardless of where or when you are reading this chapter as it hit the website on the 2nd of January 2018 at around ballz o'clock at night.**

 **Now, I realize that Cyrstal Tear's roster is not fleshed out at all other than that pedophile Holy Lord Cerabrate . . . until the word of the LN comes down and tells us the actual make up of that team, it's members will be of my own design. There will be no retro-active edit to this make-up unless the LN impresses me enough with their numbers. Upon which certain retro fixes MAY, not WILL happen. Anyway! Happy New Year again and enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Holy Lord vs Knight Most Heavenly**

* * *

 **Two Hours Before the Start of Draudillon and Draconis's Supper . . .**

Cerabrate and the members of Crystal Tear; the only adamantite adventurer's team in the Dragon Kingdom sat before the Prime Minister in his private meeting room in disbelief. Likewise, the man himself was also in shock. Father Yoland had sent a missive to him demanding an immediate meeting. The result of the rendezvous had been crudely short and to the point. Yoland had shoved a scroll at the Prime Minister and told him not to return. The elderly man had been utterly pale and was barely holding onto his health by the look of things. Several priests and priestesses had been frantically attending him. There had been a bit of a crazed look to his eyes as well. As they had left with the scroll in hand, all that the wizened cardinal had been doing was repeating the same thing over and over like a mantra.

" _Salvation! Salvation for the kingdom and Queen! Salvation!"_

 _Blithering old coot!_ Had been the Prime Minister's thoughts all the way back to his study. The room was warded against all manner of detections and spying methods. There were no windows built into the walls. A layer of precious metal lined the inner section of the walls and the door was forged out of mithril. He opened the parchment expecting the newcomer's true name and that false queendom exposed.

He could not have been more mistaken.

"What kind of idiocy is this? Who would believe such bullocks?!" Cerabrate of Crystal Tear shouted, losing his elegant edge for once. The contents of the scroll were laid bare before them. The members of the adamantite team were in utter consternation. "Who is this Draconis knave?"

Marko Sealbrand, a member of the team who specialized in anti-magic tactics and was a highly proficient spearman frowned. Scratching his goatee idly, he voiced his own concern.

"I too wonder about this man. I would normally doubt such a report. However, Father Yoland is a good man; and true. It would be absolutely unlike him to suddenly begin to blather pointless drivel."

The scroll on the table read thusly:

* * *

 _The Queendom of Avalon is not a myth or a deception. It's military might is unmatched in this continent save for the Argland Council States. Pegasus riders compose an entire section of their power. The Queen is beloved of her people and is supported by an inner circle called The Round Table. The twelve strongest knights are her elite and her castle is a spire of crystalline blue more beauteous than the skies and reaches toward the heavens. The Queen herself is unreadable, scrying was halted and countered by one of her Round Table Knights with a warning to not do so again under the most dire of consequences. Thus I was expunged._

 _Before being expelled I did glimpse a figure standing beside the Queen of Avalon not of her inner circle, yet perhaps more intimate than any of them. It is my conjecture that this figure is the one you named to be Draconis Brightblade._

 _The man in specific speaks the truth of his position in Avalon. He is of the rank of Knight Most Heavenly. It is an honorary title that none in their Queendom holds. He too is beloved of the people as I spied their singing his praises when he passed through their streets to meet their Queen. They are allies most dear and even her inner circle respects him._

 _The man himself is guarded by an angel! A Seraphim who bears a name no less! With terror and awe did I find myself interrupted from my divination of the man by this angel. More inspiring than any sunrise! Six great wings spread across the skies in all their glory and his raiment whiter than snow. A voice soft, yet powerful questioned me and my intentions. I could not help but to answer in full truth for fear of my life!_

 _Chronos! The Seraphim honored me with his name! Angel of battle and divination itself! In tones akin to honor and respect did this heavenly messenger advise me to discontinue my endeavor. That continuing to do so would be my end and that those who favored him would not take kindly to treading upon Draconis Brightblade's patience and magnanimity._

 _Humbled, I begged but a mere scrap of knowledge concerning this man. After his thoughtful and deep deliberation, he nodded slowly and seemed to consult the very gods! He then nodded and revealed to me that he could grant me a single tidbit of knowledge. I rejoiced!_

 _Then he spoke again and I paled, my face became ashen and I trembled mightily._

 _Draconis Brightblade is not only dragon blooded, but a true dragon. An Ancient Wyrm Lord who has Ascended._

 _If this mighty being sees our Queen's plight and deems us poor, wretched souls worthy of salvation, then our dark times are ended! He is our salvation!_

* * *

Cerabrate couldn't believe what was written. A named angel? A Queendom they'd never heard of? As a knight and Holy Lord he was inclined to make himself at least somewhat aware of the social goings on around the continent. Granted, none of the flowers of the surrounding nations, even the Golden Princess or the Holy Queen of Roble could hold a candle to the innocent child that was Draudillon Oriculus! Her child form inspired him . . . in more ways than one.

Resolved to never stop rushing to her kingdom's defense in order to win her favor and more, he had gathered his team of compatriots. Crystal Tear! The only adamantite team in the realm, and thereby, the strongest as well! He had earned the name Fierce Flash due to his skill with a blade and the Divine magic he used to enhance his martial arts. He was the equal to Gazef Stronoff of Re-Estize! Equal to Gagaran of the same kingdom's Blue Rose!

To think that a random conman could trick divinations of a holy man and slink his way into the Queen's dining chamber alone! His blood boiled. The Prime Minister had described him and the mysterious guardian he commanded and his team's reactions had been mixed. Reading the good Father's missive had made them all further divided in their opinions.

"This angel must be one of his men in disguise! Angels do not show favoritism! What an audacious conman this Draconis must be!"

"But what about that raven haired guard of his? Surely someone with the ability to meld from a shadow is not to be taken lightly! Never mind that, but three katana Prime Minister?!" One of Crystal Tear's members countered. The rest of them nodded in concern.

Three katana for a single fighter was unheard of. The price for one alone made even royalty balk and adventurers under orichalcum had their eyes pop from their sockets at the price that came with such a weapon. The Prime Minister nodded in confirmation.

Marko gimaced. He had fought a katana wielder from the far South once and paid for his arrogance when he believed that his longspear gave him the advantage with his superior reach. The missing eye under his eye patch served as a grisly reminder for the rest of his days. Practitioners of the katana had been called some kind of "Sam-Arh-Eye" and a master was considered mithril ranked without having to take the assessment tests of the guild. They were truly that good . . . rare too thank the gods.

Also considering that new katana being forged were so rare due to their odd tradition of families of these warriors bequeathing their blades to their next generation of warrior. That practice contributed heavily to the sky rocketed price of getting one forged.

 _If this guard has three of them then I can't begin to imagine her power if she is legitimate. Three katana for a single warrior? A king couldn't pay her upkeep!_

Another grunt came from the only woman in their group. She wore well worn and treated leather armor that had enchantments to make it harder when struck to better protect herself. She was the group's archer and she was quite pretty. Her long blond hair was slightly windblown and bright green eyes held keen insight. More than once had her eyesight and senses prevailed against the beastmen hordes. Her bow was well crafted and reinforced with mithril along its arms. Her head scarf was dapple green and brown to match her outfit. More camouflage to better her stalking and sniping support.

"If that guard is really able to wield a katana then even we might be hard pressed. Someone with the kind of money to hire someone like that isn't one to mess with without caution even if her employer is just posing. Something tells me that his power is legit though."

They all gave her a look. She was normally pretty accurate with her judgment when it came to the threat level of their targets.

"What makes you say that Deidre? We haven't even seen the guy." Marko stated evenly. He was honestly curious why she was already making judgments. The sniper would usually wait until she'd observed their targets for awhile before making decisions. A few others in the group nodded in agreement with his question.

"The Prime Minister explained to us that the Queen and this Draconis spoke to each other at first in Dragon Tongue." She looked to the man for confirmation. When he nodded in agreement, she continued. "Dragons are said to have all manner of powerful abilities. Turning into a person to hide their nature should not be too hard for them. A dragon should be able to buy quite a lot with its haord right? I mean don't the tales of the Dragon Lords all come and go with their hoards holding treasures like we could only dream?"

Her reasoning was sound as far as Marko was concerned. Their group's magic caster spoke up.

"If he truly is a dragon of such power then why would he wait until now if he wanted to help? I'm no Fluder Paradyne, but there are spells of trickery and subterfuge."

A chorus of heavy sighs went around the room. Cerabrate ground his teeth. He did not expect such a division in the opinion of this situation from his team. Then again, one did not usually have the steel nuts to claim that he was a dragon and a Knight Most Heavenly . . . whatever the hell that meant. Much less have such a claim of a realm that had never been heard of.

The claim of wiping out a beastmen raid was also ridiculous. Even with occasional aide from the Scriptures of the Slane Theocracy, it took more manpower than was sent and there were always losses on both sides. It was too ridiculous to be taken at face value.

However! That was not the most blasphemous bit of information. That this man would force her Majesty to assume such a horrible and salacious form instead of adoring admiring her childlike innocence was just horrible. Crossing his arms across his chest in a manner that one could call gallant, he growled low.

"Whatever these supposed claims and magical manipulation aside, we shall go to the Queen posthaste and put this 'Draconis' chap to the spits and make him regret this con attempt. Prime Minister, you said that he didn't even know the difference between an Adventurer and a Worker?"

At the man's acknowledgement of this piece of information, the others of Crystal Tear gasped. That kind of ignorance was unheard of in these kinds of situation and social circles. Even many of the common folk knew the difference.

"You also mentioned that he wore no identifying plate of rank?" Another nod was followed by concerned mutters from the team.

"Really?!"

"Who doesn't know this kind of thing?"

"Perhaps he's a foreigner from across the seas?"

"Impossible. The Leviathan Oceanis and Kraken of the Grand Channel prevent any such sea travel and a [ _Fly_ ] spell doesn't last long enough."

"Maybe he really was the victim of a botched [ _Teleportation_ ]?"

"Fools! That's a Tier V spell! More than likely you would die from a botched spell that powerful! Besides, even with a large group casting it, it is too risky!"

[ _Teleportation_ ] was a Tier V spell and as such only rituals and several magic casters in coordination could cast it. It was also extremely dangerous as messing up the incantation or getting destination wrong would very likely end up getting the subjects of the spell killed. Never mind the cost required for such a service to be performed for someone.

As for the sea routes, Leviathan Oceanis was akin to instant suicide as was Kraken of the Grand Channel. Both were comparable to the Three Lords of the Realm of Magma. Like La-Angler Lava Lord, they were ranked at 140, impossible for most adventuring parties on their own and even with a large organized group, the environments and other circumstances rendered battle ill advised.

"Hmph! In that case, we shall proceed with the understanding that all of this insanity is a ruse and free our innocent Queen of this man's scam! With me Crystal Tear!" The group nodded and began to file out of the room with the Prime Minister leading the way.

As Marko began to leave the room, Deidre grabbed hold of his sleeve and halted his departure. He glanced back at her and what he saw made him flinch. Deidre, who was well known in their circle for having nerves of steel, was trembling. A cold feeling settled in his gut.

"What is it Deidre? I've never seen you shake like this."

"Y-yeah. I know. I try to keep my calm around Cerebrate and everyone, but you know my true nature. You've trusted me and kept my secret. As such I feel the need to let you know out of both gratitude and as a true friend . . . I'm afraid."

The feeling in his gut doubled. Deidre lifted her headscarf a fraction and he could see the pointed elven ears she always made sure to keep hidden. She had done a lot to hide her nature from the rest of the group. Prejudice against elves was not a prevalent here as the Theocracy, but the fact that they often received aide from them – combined with the fact that they were pretty high profile as Crystal Tear – he could not blame her. Her sixth sense was sharp like her hearing and her eyes. He wasn't going to judge and had more than enough sense not to turn down every advantage he could safely get in their daily profession of monster hunting. Little did many know, she was also a Talent holder.

"Afraid? If this goes sour, we'll just skedaddle away or at worst apologize and pay recompense. We're not that bad off financially."

She shook her head as she fixed her headscarf again. Her green orbs hardened as she glared at him.

"No Marko, this is different. My mother taught me much about the far South and its culture. If that guard is anything like I was taught about katana wielders, then we are in over our heads against a man that commands that kind of warrior."

"What do you mean?" They left the room and followed their group at a respectable, yet not suspicious distance behind.

"Don't take this without the salt if you mind me saying, but Sam-Arh-Eye of the South believe that swords have a spirit within them."

A flinch aired its way across his face. A phantom pain reared its head across his eye socket. He vividly remembered something like that, but hadn't put any real stock into it.

"If that is true, then a katana acquires new powers when inhabited by a spirit. Anything from igniting the blade in flames to cursing the wounds of their target to never heal properly. Only one spirit is supposed to inhabit a blade and the possession is permanent. They don't just submit to the sword's master either. Servitude is earned and anyone who has tried and failed normally dies as the result. So what does that mean for a person wielding three? One is powerful enough, why bother with many?"

A chill passed through him as he realized and comprehended what it was that Deidre was implying. Katana of the South were superior to normal swords and other weapons. Even non-enchanted, their sharpness was well known. Yet they were difficult to wield due to their weight balance, single cutting edge, and unique curve. Having three of the same sword of that kind of caliber was redundant and foolish now that he thought about it. But this talk of spirits and powers in a blade changed that . . . and not for the better in his mind.

"Surely that's just hearsay . . . N n-not that I'm saying your mother is lying Deidre!" He held his hands up in appeasement as she glared daggers at his initial dismissal. "I mean, what are the odds? Is that even true?"

"I know not, but that she has three and serves this Draconis makes him dangerous. I heard somewhere that Brain Unglaus acquired a katana. I can't begin to imagine the price he paid to get his hands on one. One can net you a king's ransom and then some. Who gives one person that many?"

As they made their way to the castle proper, she could not help but feel like confrontation was the last thing that they should run to. Their team consisted of her: the team's scout and source of tactics. She was a bardic ranger and as such she had heard of tales of monsters and other such information that proved invaluable time and again. Marko was a respectable spear man and veteran adventurer. He was surprisingly open in his views and was the least opposed to seeking outside aide when they needed it.

They had a magic caster who was the newest addition. He was young and eager to prove himself. It was a source of struggle for her to get along with due to his excitable nature and tendency to attract attention. His magic was respectable, commendable even. But the amount of attention he drew even with magic being a source of instant priority on the field of battle was unprecedented. They also had a priest who provided healing and medical attention. He was a good man, but a bit too stiff and formal. Then there was Cerabrate, their leader. He was known to the public and the rest of the adventuring community as "The Fierce Flash" due to his Holy Lord sword skills. Even though she thought he was a pompous prick most of the time, he also had the considerable skill to actually back his attitude up.

Gaining the patronage of Queen Draudillon had been a windfall for them way back when. Yet the past six months worth of invasions taking a turn for the worst and his penchant of pedophilia seriously made her believe that it was time to jump from this sinking ship and start again in the borders of a safer, or at least least economically dire straights nation. Though with her heritage most places were right out.

Cerabrate and all of their team alongside the Prime Minister arrived at the dining chambers far quicker than she realized as she was mainly on auto pilot as they hurried along. The maidservant and manservant outside the doors held appalled expressions as Cerabrate made his way past them and to the doors. Their expressions told her everything. They shouldn't be intruding . . .

"Your Majesty! Where is this conman who has you entranced so?!"

Even as Cerabrate made his proclamation, her Talent reared its head and she halted in her tracks. Her breath seized in her lungs. Her green eyes widened to nearly impossible size and her knees buckled. Skin broke into goosebumps and her teeth began to chatter. Part of her knew that her complexion had paled and a cold sweat broke out over her whole being.

Deidre's Talent was _Scales of Power_. This potent survival ability let her feel and perceive how powerful people and beasts around her were in approximation to the ranking system that the guild had in place. It allowed her and the others in Crystal Tear to skirt around the "don't underestimate it by how it looks" syndrome common to many novice adventurers. If she had to describe the ability, she would stat that it felt and looked like she could see how their strength was overall by the color of the 'aura' that they exuded.

Greenish auras were friendly or weak if hostile. Bluish auras were stronger with the darker the shade meaning the stronger they were. Yet these were common rabble to her and the others. Those of faded yellow were notable, but not difficult. Orange hues warned of difficult individuals or strong opponents that were not to be underestimated. Anything in red was to be given the highest degree of caution and not engaged until a great deal of preparation and research was completed. If she perceived a crimson skull . . . well she wasn't suicidal . . . those were the DO NOT mess with at all costs.

She could see the Queen in her seat, her aura was dark orange. It spoke of her power and dragon heritage. The royal was surprised but not hostile. The man seated at the opposite end of the table looked to them with surprise as well, but his aura . . .

 _What . . . what is this . . . ? I've never seen this . . ._

 _ **BLACK**_

A night black skull seemed to overlay this man before them as he gazed at them with analyzing eyes. There was no anger in his body language, yet his poise told her that he wasn't dropping his guard.

 _Black? Death . . . This must be what absolute, inescapable death feels like . . . A black skull?! He's a threat that exceeds Leviathan Oceanis and those impossible threats? Eclipsing a 140 rank difficulty . . . 200? Higher?!_

She crumbled to her knees. Her mind hurt, her body swayed and she found herself fighting not to vomit.

 _We're going to die! Don't antagonize him!_

Marko had noticed that she had slumped to her knees and when he caught a glimpse of her face, his own paled in response. He never had seen Deidre respond to an encounter like this! Sure she would become tense and wary about strong foes. He had seen her sweat and grit her teeth in fear at foes that they had faced that she swore that they should not engage. Breaking down like she was now sparked a different feeling in him.

Dread.

Her eyes were dilated. Sweat poured off of her like water. She was shivering and had fallen to her knees. It had been quiet and Cerabrate's loud entrance had hidden her loss of footing completely. If he hadn't been standing beside her when she slumped, he would never have noticed it. Her head shook back and forth like a madman in denial.

"What the hell? Deidre, calm down. What color is he?" He kept his voice low as he checked on her. The elven woman's skin had gone clammy. Her lips moved but he couldn't hear her. "Hm? Come on, you're stronger than this. What color is he? Red? A red skull even?"

She had explained very roughly how her talent worked and interacted with her. The concept of threat level by coloration of their aura was interesting and it had indeed saved them many a time. Admittedly he had been skeptical of such a Talent, but with the advent of beastmen Alphas, he had steadily become a rather firm supporter of her judgment calls. Concerned, he knelt and placed his ear closer so he could hear her.

"B-bb-black . . . a black skull."

"Huh?!" He looked at her full one in shock. His professionalism was the only thing that kept him from screaming his shock at her words.

 _Black? BLACK?! She'd never described any foe we've ever looked at as a black threat! What does that even mean?_

If red skulled opponents were outside their realm of fighting capacity then what the hells did black mean? They were adamantite ranked! What kind of joke was this that the strongest were weak compared to something like another man?

The two Crystal Tear members recalled the missive from Father Yoland.

" _He is a true dragon . . . an Ancient Wyrm Lord . . ."_

Not a Dragon Lord . . . a _Wyrm_ Lord.

"So this is Crystal Tear." The man spoke while still seated. His eyes were inquisitive and searching. The Queen merely nodded in response to him. Deidre was still shivering, but she managed to regain enough of her wits to pay attention to what was going on. She and Marko were able to see Draudillon in her full adult form and both of them had to admit . . . this form suited her far better as a queen. She was regal and dignified.

"Indeed we are! You sir, bear witness to the strongest warriors in the realm and . . ."

The crimson haired guest of the queen glared with eyes as hard as diamonds. His brow furrowed in frustration as he leaned back in his chair enough to seem condescending.

"Get to the point!" Cerabrate had never been just blatantly interrupted before and the vehemence in the man's voice was palpable. "You rudely barge into a serious, and private discussion and expect me to care who you are?! How vain are you? Spouting airs without good reason? So I repeat myself. Get. To. The. Point."

The Holy Lord of Crystal Tear sputtered in disbelief. Never had anyone treated him with such contempt! The Prime Minister was taken back at the presence that pushed onto them like a wave. Feeding off of her guest's annoyance and indignation, Draudillon glared at them as well.

"Well Prime Minister? Cerabrate of Crystal Tear? Why are you interrupting our discussions?!" Before they could answer her, she provided it for them. "Or does it have to do with your trip to Father Yoland to have Lord Draconis spied on via divination?"

At this point the Prime Minister paled to ashen white. Cerabrate and the members of Crystal Tear looked to the man on the spot and glared. The magic caster of their group spoke his disbelief.

"You let yourself be tracked?!"

"What a novice mistake." Marko groaned. This meant that this Draconis fellow held the cards and knew what to expect while they were in the dark and at a severe disadvantage. It was a worst case scenario for them now. Piling on what Deidre now felt, he was cashing it in. Whatever happened here, he wasn't stepping into this mess any further.

"Impossible! What manner of sorcery is this?" He pointed a chubby finger at the man seated before them. Said person sighed and snapped his fingers. A girl rose from his shadow and they all tensed. Cerabrate had a hand on his sword and their casters held their staves. It was the raven haired woman, but she looked different from what the Prime Minister had described. There was only one katana as well.

"Kurome, have you finished your report to Chronos?"

The girl nodded as she smiled at him. He reached out and patted her on the head which drew a childish giggle from her. It was jarring.

"Well done. Kurome here followed you from the moment you left Queen Draudillon's throne room till you left after meeting with Father Yoland. One does not deal with political powers without learning to cover your own backside. The era and location matter not. It never changes. You should have known better Prime Minister. Kurome, join your sister please."

She bowed and walked toward them at the entrance before stopping beside her sister. In their rushed entrance, they had completely missed the figure at the door. Deidre gripped Marko's pant leg like a lifeline. He didn't need to know what their threat levels were now. He could feel the swordsman's spirit off of these two and it was staggering. Then he saw that the Prime Minister had not mistaken himself.

Kurome's sister had three katana. Four total for two girls who could meld into shadow? He noticed then that Draconis had taken a concerned air as he looked to them.

"Are they that frightening to you? Young lady?"

Eyes turned their way and the rest of their group finally realized Deidre's state. She bowed her head and sobbed. The sharp eyed woman nodded without shame. Cerabrate couldn't believe his eyes. Neither could the rest of them for that matter. An adamantite reduced to tears and fear?

"I see. Akame, Kurome, thank you for your attendance. Return and relax for a while. I'll call you if needed."

They both nodded and smiled to each other in what looked to be happiness and melded into their own shadows before disappearing completely. They hadn't made a sound.

"Now. What is it you want?"

The situation had seemed to reset itself. Deidre shakily stood, though her shivering persisted to a degree. Marko offered her support and she took it gladly. Cerabrate had seemed to recover from being socially countered and put on his heels.

"I know not what kind of sorcery this is, but your fraud ends here!"

"And what fraud is that pray tell?"

"Impersonating a knight, a dragon, and claiming to be of some lofty title! Who would believe such wild tales? Father Yoland is taken by a malady of some kind, some kind of counter magic! Would you not agree my friends?"

The priest and mage nodded. The young arcane caster stepped up and pointed a finger at him.

"Indeed! What magic spells that can make a false interaction during divinations don't exist. No one has ever experienced such a thing. If they had, then it would have been recorded!"

The priest held his tongue. Divine interventions were not unheard of, but they were only tales; legends. If the angel that was mentioned in Yoland's missive was actually real, then that was another can of worms entirely. But the knight . . .

Draconis looked at them with a degree of tiredness that one would likely see a teacher with during a tutoring season with a stubborn pupil.

"Have you ever given thought to the possibility that such spells are simply beyond your reach? By extension that would mean that those spells haven't even been cast to be seen in the first place?"

The young magic caster sputtered. It was a reasonable logic to follow. Higher Tier magic had yet to even be tapped on. Anyone with a passing fancy of studying magic would know of that possibility even if they could not cast a single one. That did not make the young man back down.

"Even so! Then if you know of such a thing then what spell was used! You obviously thought of tracking the Prime Minister, did you not watch Father Yoland as he divined you?"

"There was no need. Given that he yet lives, my countermeasures were not triggered and instead one of my retainers countered him and deigned that he be let go with a warning not to do so again. I know not which spells he used for I was not present to give him direction."

 _Damn his logic!_ They thought as one.

Cerabrate clenched a fist at this man. Infuriating! So smooth, having a answer for everything so far.

"Your act cannot hold forever you conman! You tricked the honorable Father Yoland and cover your questions well, but tricking her Majesty by claiming dragon blood is preposterous! The dragons of worthy note are known at large to the ruling bodies and even whispered by the common folk. Never has anyone heard of your name you knave!"

Draudillon bristled at the comment and Cerabrate took that as a sign that he was right. So he was shocked when the sound of shattering glass took all back. The maid and butler rushed into the room and gasped at the sight. The Queen had lost her temper and had thrown her filled wineglass at him. The glass spilled its contents all over him and shattered against his face. The splintering glass cut his brow and blood mixed with red wine. The sting lost to him in his stupor.

"You insufferable lout!" She bellowed, her dragon blood lending to her presence as she glared unvarnished at him. "Your raving makes me look an incompetent before my guest! He has spoken to me in Dragon Tongue!"

"With respect your Majesty, a scholar could do the same."

Before Draudillon could refute him, Draconis held up a hand with a sigh to forestall her.

"That point actually has a bit of merit. However," He switched to Dragon Tongue and spoke to her. "Speaking it and feeling the power behind it that only dragon's can do is another matter entirely. Unless one is also a dragon there is no real way to disprove that point unless another dragon appears to confirm it as an unbiased party."

She scoffed and responded back in Dragon Tongue as well. "Fie, this is needlessly tedious!"

He laughed in genuine amusement at her exasperation.

"I agree." His speech reverting to the common tongue as he finished laughing.

Cerabrate grit his teeth. Even when caught on a point of fact it turned against him somehow. How slick and crafty was this swindler? He hadn't even stood from the chair he was in. Draudillon was obviously in the palm of his hand! This could not continue.

 _If I cannot best him with words then my sword arm will do!_

He reached to take off his glove when Deidre cried out.

"No! You mustn't! That is the last manner of challenge you want to attempt! It will be your death!"

All went quiet at her words. Crystal Tear in shock, Draudillon in surprise, the Prime Minister in confusion, and the man who was the center of all this madness with intrigue. Deidre stepped tentatively forward before kneeling before Draudillon.

Still slightly shivering, she addressed the Queen respectfully.

"Your Majesty, I beg forgiveness for this spectacle we have made. He is your guest and the paranoia of a few may damn the many. Please forgive us."

The Queen gave the woman before her a curious look. The others of her team gawked at her. What had gotten into their scout? The young magic caster shook a fist in anger.

"Deidre?! What are you apologizing for? This man has thrown everything into chaos. We need to take care of this!"

"Is she under his spell?!"

Draudillon approached the younger woman and knelt in front of her. Taking her face in her hands, the True/Fake Dragon Lord lifted Deidre's face to look her in the eyes. A silent conversation played out in their gazes. The elven woman could see the searching and enlightening gaze of the Queen she served. The dragon blooded Queen could see that the elven woman had glimpsed a power that she knew was beyond her abilities. She knew of the Talent that the elf possessed and didn't envy her for it with Draconis in the room. She wasn't even sure that her Talent could be willingly turned off.

"So you have seen his power with your own eyes." The rest of them froze. Marko swallowed rather loudly. He hadn't realized that the Queen knew of their scout's Talent. Deidre nodded in the Queen's hands. "You know your Talent and trust it well. Good."

The rest of them tensed. The Queen had just spilled the beans in a way to the stranger in their midst who was now grinning devilishly. He sipped his wine and sighed in content.

"A Talent? Something that one is born with and is unique to the person I presume?"

The Queen turned to him and nodded. "It is indeed. Not all are born with one."

"I see, and hers I assume grants her to the power to see at a glance a power comparison?"

"More or less. I am unaware of the specifics."

"Your Majesty!" Cerabrate could not hold himself any longer. He drew off his glove and threw it at the man. Deidre froze, horrified before fainting away. The glove landed short and Draconis made no move to take up the article of clothing. "Enough! You speak of a key lynch pin of our team!"

Draconis seemed to think for a moment before nodding. Amazingly, he turned to the Queen and frowned at her.

"I must agree with this man on at least this point as well your Majesty. Such information is not to be spoken lightly. Not that I had made a guess as to her ability. However, why should I take up that glove in challenge?" he faced them again. Marko could feel the pressure in the room building. "Your scout has warned you against such action. Do you not value her input? Do you not trust her power?"

"Silence you silver tongued snake! I will not be manipulated and humiliated further! The courtyard in an hour!"

Cerabrate turned on his heel and exited with a flourish meant to intimidate, but Marko thought otherwise. The way that this man was dressed and outfitted spoke of at least ridiculous wealth. There was no way someone with that much material possession didn't at least take high class instructors to teach him at the minimum, the basics of fighting.

Their priest and magic caster also left the room as did the Prime Minister. Marko looked to Deidre's unconscious form at the Queen's feet. The Queen looked to him.

"You seem to be of a bit more sense at the moment Marko of Crystal Tear. Take Lady Deidre to one of my guest chambers. If you wish to remain by her side to ensure her health, then I will permit it and send for a healer to watch over her."

He bowed and forced saliva into his mouth to stop the dryness before speaking. Even then his voice cracked slightly.

"You are most gracious your Majesty. I apologize for this debacle."

She nodded and he took his teammate into his arms. The Queen retook her seat at the table and as he stood he noticed movement from Draconis. An object flew through the air toward him. Swiftly realizing that it was not a flying dagger or dart, he caught the item. It was a vial of some kind. The quality of the container stunned him. Was this crystal? It was too heavy to be glass. The small vial was completely transparent. A light blue liquid sloshed about.

"Marko is it? Take that and give it to Deidre when she awakens. A gift for someone who knows their power and place when the monsters come out to play. Her Talent is wasted on that knight leader of yours. You two seem to be of better sense."

"This is not dangerous to her health? Forgive the question, but you are still an unknown."

He smiled and waved off his suspicion.

"It is not. I promise. As for what it does; she will gain a new power. As to how it manifests will be left to her. I look forward to her decision regardless. She could choose to ignore it completely, which I would not hold against her."

He nodded even though he didn't understand everything. He bowed to the Queen before excusing himself.

* * *

 **Castle in General**

* * *

All around the halls and grounds of the castle, whispers and rumors spread like a wildfire. Cerabrate and Crystal Tear barging in on the Queen and her guest at supper, the questioning and verbal conflict and his issue of challenge. The Fierce Flash was challenging the guest of the Queen!

Who was this guest she had? It had been ages since such a thing had occurred. Was the Queen in danger?

The guest was quite handsome and dressed like no noble ever could. He was well spoken and powerful. He had two katana masters as his guards!

Tongues waggled in the nooks and crannies of the castle at the quickly approaching duel of the strongest warrior in the kingdom against a literal unknown. The word had even seeped into the guts of the city and noble and common alike began to wonder at the spectacle that was to come.

The castle courtyard was packed with spectators. Despite the situation around the capital, this kind of news still sparked curiosity of interest. Man also grew concerned about this event due to the leader of their strongest protectors being one of the combatants. What was to happen to them all if something were to happen? Was this challenged guest strong?

Commoner and noble alike were gathered. Though the nobles were actually rather few in number due to many dying in the invasion and from raiders as many of them had tried to flee to the Slane Theocracy or north to the Empire through the mountains. Many of the northerly traveling had been set upon by wild wyverns in the territories of the Wyvern Rider tribes. So the number of actual nobility was worryingly sparse. Most were poor, surviving merchants and the commoners. They all had learned rather quickly to help one another if you wanted to live another week, much less month. Losses of those willing to fight to try to defend their fellow countrymen and women were keenly felt and mourned given the vicious nature of the beastmen invaders.

Most of the remaining nobility were actually keenly aware that with their losses, the nation would likely never fully recover even if they some how survived. That tidbit was keenly kept silent for the sake of what little hope the common folk had left in their adventurer protectors.

It was to all of this hustle and bustle that Deidre awoke in the guest chambers of the castle. She glanced around and spotted Marko sitting in a chair across the room. He was polishing his spear, an enchanted silvered weapon that had served them well when they had encountered certain undead and were creatures.

"M-Marko? Ugh . . . how long was I out?"

He looked up at her from his maintenance and huffed through his nose. Setting aside his oil cloth and the weapon against the wall, he sat forward with his elbows on his knees.

"Just short of the hour. That duel is supposed to take place in a few moments. It's got the whole city in an uproar and the courtyard is already packed to burst. Everyone's whispering and rumors about."

Deidre paled a bit, but didn't shudder. She shook her head sadly.

"He didn't even listen to my warning? What use am I when my ability doesn't carry weight to a leader?"

Marko remembered how Draconis had responded to the challenge that Cerabrate had made to Draconis.

"That Draconis asked the same thing of Cerabrate after you fainted. Asked our leader if he didn't value your opinion and your Talent. Sounded to me like Draconis was actually impressed that you were able to realize how powerful he was. If you ask me, the man is only going through with this because he won't hear the end of it if he doesn't respond to it."

She sighed heavily. Cerabrate had been becoming steadily deluded with his ability to kill an Alpha whenever they encountered one. Granted he had their help, but it was always him landing the killing blow. Her archery could not pierce the hides of an Alpha ranked beastman, so against one she was rather hampered if that was the only thing they were fighting. Much of her time was spent scouting, evading and harrying foes to those that could take them down.

A shiny object flew through the air and landed in her lap. She looked to Marko surprised. When had he gotten a potion of such make? It was unlike anything she had ever seen. The liquid was a gorgeous blue and the container itself looked priceless!

"What is this?"

"Something Draconis tossed me. He said to give it to you when you regained consciousness. He mentioned something about it being his reward to you for recognizing his power and knowing your limits."

She gazed at the magical concoction in her hands. Using part of her spiritual magic, she cast [ _Detect Poison_ ] and got no response. She knew that it was magical in nature, but she was no arcanist. She knew well that looks could deceive, but was this one of those cases? Silently wondering if the man would find in insulting to ask what it did before deciding to use it or not, she pocketed the item.

Marko nodded at her action.

"He mentioned that whether or not you made use of it or not was up to you and that he would not feel insulted either way. Rather generous of the guy if you ask me."

"What about the duel, aren't you going to go watch?"

"That's the great thing about having the Queen's permission to use a guest room. I chose the one overlooking the courtyard. We'll have an unblocked view of the whole event."

Deidre opened the large bay windows and looked down as the bustling noise of the crowds below met her ears. They were two stories up and Marko was right, she could clearly see everything in the courtyard from their location.

Cerabrate stood to one side of the courtyard as he looked over his sword and other equipment. Commoner and noble alike were rooting for him and asking him what his opponent was like. He waved to them and her ears could pick up the platitudes and assurances he spoke with eloquent words. At the same time he spoke of Draconis in negative terms and something within her boiled in anger.

 _Wait, why am I getting mad at his deriding of Draconis? The man is a foreigner, that much is certain now, but why do I give weight to not approving of the negative comments? Is it because Draconis stood up for me when Cerabrate pigheadedly charged forward even with my warning?_

She bit her lip in confusion as she tried to sort her feelings and rationalize what was going on in her thoughts. Marko could see the indecisiveness in her body language. To be honest, if he was a betting man, he knew what she was thinking and likely agreed with her assessment.

 _Cerabrate has a habit of glorifying himself with his ability. Not saying he doesn't have the ability to back it up, but it has gotten worse lately. Mayhap this newcomer is cut from a different cloth and even stronger?_

"Hey, don't think too hard on it Deidre."

She looked back at her comrade in surprise.

"What?"

"I mean what I said. You're thinking about this too hard. Whatever happens to him during this duel is his own fault for not heeding your warning. You did your part; nothing more. I know he's our leader, but we aren't responsible for everything he gets himself into."

Deidre sighed and nodded her head. It wasn't hard to understand where the man was coming from. Their team wasn't exactly as tightly knit as some were lead to believe. They simply relied on each other's abilities and the information that other teams shared via the guild.

Even she had not been a part of this team but for a total of four years. That was a lot of time for a single group given the dangers of their profession, but to her it was but a blink. Most of them would be dead within the time it took for her to fully mature as an elf. She was only 124 years old. Younger than Queen Draudillon. That being said however, she had no desire to see the queen who cared for her people yet could do little to help her people as she was; to suffer an ignoble fate at the hands of savage beastmen.

A hush came over the courtyard and they both knew that the Queen's guest: Draconis had entered the area. Now that they saw him walking, both of them looked at each other in greater concern. How did they miss how tall he was? He easily stood taller than Marko. Never mind that Marko was the same height as Cerabrate.

* * *

 **Castle Courtyard**

* * *

Cerabrate was assuring the people questioning him that he would be victorious and save the Queen from this slink of a conman when the courtyard went quiet. Queen Draudillon had entered the open area in her adult form. The gathered people bowed as a single entity. Even then, there was some mixed reaction seeing her in her true form.

Many had never seen her ever, but knew that she cared for them. She had sent so many relief parties with escorts from the adventurer's guild. So many had made it to those who needed it, but many more had fallen to the beastmen. There was little she could do to control it given their massive numbers and natural superiority to humans. They knew she was trying her best and so they did not begrudge her. If anything they cursed the beastmen even as they feared them. Perhaps more so, where was her great grandfather who founded the nation? Why had he not come to help them in their hour of need?

Those who had been honored with meeting her had seen her only in her child form, but whispers and rumors always made it back home. They spoke of their ruler's other form. One of an adult. This was it! She was regal and poised, her gaze keen and yet compassionate. Her expression softened at the sight of the children both of decent clothing and rags. The families gathered that looked to her for protection she was truly hard pressed to provide anymore. She had not run like members of their nobility had, not that she had blamed them for wanting to survive whatever way they could.

However, as she spoke her eyes hardened as she looked to Cerabrate. Her voice carried easily over the courtyard and all present could say that no one could claim misinterpreting her words.

"My people, the life of this kingdom. Please lift your heads." She waited as they did so. All eyes rested on her. "I know that you have all heard of the whisperings of my new guest to our kingdom. Due to paranoia and misplaced emotions, a challenge has been issued to him in question of his integrity and intention in meeting with me."

Murmers began to travel among everyone gathered. This was not what Cerabrate, The Fierce Flash had been telling them. Who was telling the truth? Was the queen really under some kind of spell as was mentioned by the talented magic caster of Crystal Tear? Among the spectators, several adventurer teams had also gathered. Cerabrate was well known for his sword skill. Whoever this guy may be, he was about to regret pissing of Cerabrate. The Queen continued after a moment.

"Many of you may wonder who this man is. Know that he has already performed a service to the kingdom is saving the village of Tildeus to our northwest from a beastman raid. An Alpha was among the number and he slew it. His comrades also quelled their forces in their entirety."

Surprised cries went up among the people. Many praised the gods for their fellow countrymen's salvation. The adventurers gathered now whispered among each other like the rest of those gathered. An Alpha? They were not easily fought and few could best them without issue. It was so rare to actually pin them down much less slay them. If it was true, it was a significant feat and truly a boon to the kingdom.

"Know that I do not approve of this duel. Now, Knight Most Heavenly Draconis, if you would?" She stepped to the side and to everyone's shock, bowed to the man who approached.

The man made those gathered gape. Adventurers tensed and everyone looked up to some degree. He stood a taller than any of them. His steps were confident and sure. Several women swooned, some into their husbands arms. He was breathtaking. His clothing was regal and well kept. Crimson hair framed a moderately sharp face that was pleasing to look upon. The armor that adorned him shined in the evening sun. The sunlight glinted off of it as the tails of his surcoat swayed in time with his footfalls.

Stopping at the opposite end of the courtyard, he stared at The Fierce Flash in annoyance.

"Cerabrate of Crystal Tear. Queen Draudillon has informed me of who you are, but what I have seen of you thus far has been anything but impressive. You interrupt discussions between her Majesty and I concerning the tragedies of this kingdom and my enlightenment to my sudden transporting to her kingdom against my will. You disregard your fellow teammate's warning to not force a duel on top of that. For what end? To prove me false? Of what?"

"Silence you! You have not been on the battlefields protecting the people!"

"Then why aren't you out there on those battlefields now?"

Silence. That was what occurred in response to the question posed by this man before them. A cold wind blew through the courtyard, rustling the grass there. All gathered wondered the same. For every hour not spent out among the kingdom's vast land, more people suffered at the hands of their invaders.

"I have protected your fellow citizens and left a guardian there who can and will continue to protect them when I am away seeking to form an alliance with your Queen. You charge in half-cocked and without proper information of the situation. Your actions are a hindrance! This duel is pointless and a waste of valuable time for your kingdom."

"Nothing is a waste of time if it concerns the innocence of her Majesty!"

The man deadpanned. "Seriously?"

Cerabrate drew his sword. The action drew 'ooh's' and 'ah's' and other appellations. It was a blade of masterful quality and enchanted to boot. True it was not like the dark black blade that Lakyus of Blue Rose took up, but it was no less powerful. Said to have been forged from orichalcum, it could sunder lesser weapons with its superior material. It was also the primary conduit for his divine magic that gave him his moniker.

"Yes, it is you who do not understand! Draw steel and you shall see a true wielder of a sword."

"Fine. Victory conditions? Rules of engagement?"

"No outside interference. Until you yield."

He laughed. Laughed at the strongest warrior of the kingdom!

"Then we would be at it until you passed out. I will never yield. How about a clearer term for victory?"

Cerabrate as a warrior was seething. As a man he was furious. As a knight he was insulted. As a Holy Lord, this was blasphemous!

"Then to the death!" Gasps rang out from all present save this man, who frowned.

"The only one dying will be you. It will be by my choosing and my timing, no less. Are you sure of this?" The assured confidence in his voice infuriated him.

"Keep talking!" Cerebrate was ready to charge the man then and there. His pride however, would not allow him to swing until he drew his sword. "Now draw!"

The redhead sighed and made to draw, but instead detached his sheathed sword and placed to the side at his feet. Before anyone could say anything, he drew a new weapon out of thin air. The crowds gasped and rubbed eyes in disbelief. This new one was a hand and half sword of beauteous craftsmanship that exceeded Cerabrate's. The hilt was a elegant, polished wood and metal that gleamed like mithril. The blade that extended from its housing was unlike any seen. The weapon pulsed and held a orange-red sheen that seemed to imitate the ocean during sunset. The weapon was runed! The crests glowed with radiant blue, contrasting the blade magnificently.

No flashy showmanship accompanied its draw, only a firm stance. However those adventurers present gawked. He held it one handed and kept his off hand clutched behind his back. He held out the sword level to the ground at Cerebrate now in blatant defiance. The broad side of the weapon visible to all.

"You are the challenger are you not?"

Cerabrate grit his teeth and charged the man with a yell of anger. As the Holy Lord ran across the distance between them, Draconis stood stoically. The leader of Crystal Tear lashed out as he came into striking distance. A striking chop meant to take the head from his opponent. The orange-red blade suddenly moved and the strike only struck its opposing sword. The ring of metal on metal resonated. Cerabrate frowned. The man's stance had not changed, only the position of his sword arm and weapon. The blade stood at attention into the air as his own sword struggled against him. He tried pushing his strength into the deadlock, but it was like pushing a wall, immovable and unyielding.

"I assume you are pushing against this blade lock with your full strength?"

He received a bored, lazy look from his opponent. A sharp shove pushed Cerabrate away several feet. The Holy Lord set his sword again. [ _Flow Acceleration_ ], [ _Lesser Strength_ ], and [ _Keen Flurry_ ] activated, he glared. He launched into his next assault. His blade flashed as he unleashed his attacks. His sword arm and by extension the sword itself was a blur of lethality.

"There it is, the lethal flurry of steel that the Fierce Flash uses to overwhelm Alphas!" The adventurers cheered. Even Alphas struggled to keep up with unless they were innately quick. Even then most didn't get away unscathed. The attacks closed and Draconis smirked. His off hand remained behind his back as he swung his blade in response.

"Wha?" Veterans questioned what happened next.

A flurry of matching strikes clashed with Cerabrate's attacks as the ringing of steel sounded like the rapid hammering of many smiths at a work. Silver white strikes clashed with orange-red strikes in a rain of sparks from the magically enchanted blades. Marko and Deidre openly gaped. The difference was astonishing. Adventurers gathered gawked at the martial display the two combatants were displaying. Cerabrate utilized his whole body, shoulders, back, and legs to help keep power in his blows. However the man he fought remained a still pool of water with only his arm and hand moving to match the incoming attacks. None of the Holy Lord's attacks made it through as they blade locked yet again.

A shockwave from the contact of the lock blew by everyone in the courtyard. Cerabrate panted lightly, but Draconis was still as stoic before the fight began. The nobility and common folk alike stood spellbound by the exchange.

The adamantite leader glared at Draconis. He hadn't even gotten a grazing strike in. The man's defense was ludicrous. Never had he seen anything able to repel that flurry of blows fully. But with so little movement, everything was ridiculously efficient.

 _How is that possible? He's not even beginning to breath hard? It has to be that sword he changed to._

He whispered and his blade began to glow. Those present leaned forward in anticipation. Here it was, the special technique that garnered his namesake. He charged again and swung, this time for the sword he was holding. Draconis lifted a brow as his strike connected. He kept his grip and the sound of ringing metal echoed through the air. Cerabrate gripped his sword in both hands and came down in a vicious overhead chop. Draconis returned the favor with an upward swing, the two blades met again and Cerabrate felt his hands jar in pain. He nearly lost his grip as he stepped back, barely keeping his balance. It was unheard of! A single handed rising swing had far less power than a two handed downward stroke! How strong was this man?!

Draconis made no motion to advance. He looked at Cerabrate with an intrigued eye as he set his stance again. The Holy Lord and Knight Most Heavenly stared at each other. All the spectators continued to stare in awe. Draconis broke the silence, but his stance remained the same as when the duel had begun.

"I see, you're hedging on sundering my weapon."

Cerebrate grit his teeth at being found out.

"Not many people bother using that tactic. It leaves you open."

Everyone present wondered at his words as Draconis rolled his right shoulder.

"I will give you one more attempt. After that, I will go on the offensive."

Cerabrate growled lowly. The man had not been moved from his position once since the beginning of the fight. This was ludicrous! That sunder attempt being foiled by his weapon made him wonder what it was made from. It wasn't adamantite, that was certain. It did not have the properties of the strongest metal. Now that that option had been exhausted he would have to draw upon his divine magic and channeling that into his abilities.

He focused on his magic, combining them with his Martial Arts made him extraordinarily powerful. It also placed enormous strain on the user even more than usual as a result.

"[ _F_ _low Acceleration_ ], [ _Ability Boost_ ], [ _Greater Ability Boost_ ], [ _Evasion_ ] . . . [ _Blessed Weapon_ ], [ _True Strike_ ], [ _Haste_ ] . . ."

Those gathered gasped. Four Martial Arts combined with three powerful Divine Spells was beyond the majority of warriors of the nation . . . nay . . . the continent! At least by a single person by himself it was. Lifting his sword to the sky, the weapon shined with holy white light.

"Know the power of holiness! Smite him down! [ _Holy Flash of Steel_ ]!"

Cerabrate swung down and Draconis grew surprised as a searing white crescent wave of vertical energy shot from the blade of his opponent in an arc that followed the swing. The attack traversed the distance between the two men like lightning and caught him full on. No guarding action or evasion was seen as the attack exploded. Bits of dirt and grass rained about the area for a moment as cries of fear and awe erupted from the gathered spectators.

"That finishes this duel."

"Oh? I thought it was to the death?"

The dust and debris settle to reveal Draconis not only still standing, but unharmed. A light shimmering barrier like aura dissipated from around him.

"An interesting attack, but it's magical in nature despite the delivery method. Unfortunately for you, Ancient Draconic Spell Resistance negated that. If you want to actually harm me in that method, bring something stronger. To be fair, it would be very effective against an Alpha I suppose. Though I wonder how many times you can launch that before exhausting yourself."

Draconis took a step forward and Cerabrate flinched.

"I believe I told you that you had one more chance." The man set himself into an actual battle stance. It was strange, his legs spread out to better distribute his weight and lower his center of gravity. Yet his lead leg rocked back and forth on the ball of his foot. His sword arm held his weapon in a lower angle behind his back leg and swayed slightly to and fro. And then they saw something new.

A shield. It was trimmed in gold yet its luster was half blue and half white split down the center. The tapered bottom of the defensive implement was designed like an angel with wings spreading up either side of the shield. The top was trio-point crested with emeralds inlaid in each spire like protrusion.

A defensive armament, and he hadn't once used it defending against the strongest warrior in the realm . . .

Why then bring it to bear when attacking?

Looking on, there was an ease to the stance that made warriors of the adventurers gathered both envious and nervous. He was relaxed; there was no tension or stiffness. This was the battle stance of a veteran of combat. A soldier used to not just monsters, but all out war.

"They say that you adventurers are monster hunters, but do you know what the greatest monster of all is?"

Everyone remained deathly silent and still. His voice was chilling as he narrowed a wicked gaze at Cerabrate.

"Humans."

Everyone shivered and gasped. Before they could question him why he continued.

"The beastmen kill and eat you as food, but they know not the terror that humans are capable of. Constrained by laws and societal standards and lofty goals and greed, they would sell and kill family and friends as soon as make deals and pacts with them. Even animals aren't as brutal to their own kind. If anything they are the most honest beings in the world. Even evil entities of the world are more honorable at times than humans. A man loses his mind and morality and commits devious atrocities to innocents regardless of age, gender, or familial relation. A woman seeks comfort and security only to disavow the ones who give it to her in good faith and friendship or even love. Rulers and leaders exploit the very people that give them the ability to live as rulers and leaders. Bandits prey on their own race. What else can you call humans, but monsters!"

The people paled at the hardness of his eyes even as they weren't focused on them specifically. Draconis glared at Cerabrate.

"However, those same monsters called 'humans', are also capable of untold and immeasurable good." His expression softened. "Men, women, and children who would selflessly go forth and help not just their fellow human kin, but those of other races as well. They that would do so not caring about how they are viewed by their own. That would do so regardless of good times or bad. Those people, that potential is why I still fight to protect those helpless, those weak, those in need. The Queen is a blessing to you all. She is one of those people!"

Draudillon swallowed and found herself humbled by the conviction in his words. Everyone looking on at this spectacle began murmuring to each other and looking to each other with a renewed conviction and connection. Noble and commoner glanced at each other beginning to understand what this man, this guest of the Queen was trying to say to them.

"Her Majesty, who bears both dragon blood and human blood cares for you all . . . yet maggots like you! You Cerabrate! Do not help her and her people for the sake of helping because it is the right and just thing to do. You do it because you desire her! Her child form, a child, you! You shame the moniker of a Holy Lord and a Divine swordsman. Perverse and vain, a narcissist! The Prime Minister is no different, but his still cares for the nation as a whole."

Some mothers grabbed their daughters and drew them close. Fathers growled at the revelation. Brothers younger and elder clenched fists. Were these the confessions of their Queen to this man? Several adventurers either nodded or shook their heads. Some in agreement, others in disbelief. Even more so a few bit back subdued curses directed toward the man being put on the spot had been a thorn in some people's sides. Yet what could one do against someone who had the ability and skill that was superior to you?

Societal constraints was an apt way of putting it. The Adventurers Guild did have many benefits, but the strict rules also prevented a lot of true good from being done. This was especially true of healers assisting the poor and destitute.

Cerabrate grit his teeth.

 _This bastard! How much can he do with that silver tongue of his, even in a duel! Damn this bastard!_

"Enough of this! [ _Holy Flash of . . ._ ]!"

Draconis seemed to instantly cover the distance and blocked his field of view with the shield so close to his face that he couldn't drop his arms without having to take a step back.

 _Shit!_

Forced to backpedal, the shield withdrew, but the man did not as he came up and connected with an uppercut to the underside of Cerabrate's jaw as he swung down in an attempted to catch Draconis as the shield backed off. Yet, however he wanted to scream as pain shot through his left arm, he could not due to his jaw nearly biting his tongue off as the fist struck.

Said fist held that orange-red blade that reinforced his strike, even as the held blade passed clean through his left arm as it traveled up and met the downward swinging appendage. Draconis had shifted his body to present his right side to Cerebrate, allowing the downward chop to miss by a hair as his uppercut shot up between the Holy Lord's arms.

As Cerabrate reeled onto his heels and his arm flew free of his body in a bloody shower, the orange-red sword seeking his blood twirled at the apex of the punch before halting in a reverse grip and descending into the man's sword arm shoulder. The Holy Lord gasped in pain, and then screamed as the blade twisted, tearing muscle and sinew before ripping out.

Cerabrate's blade fell to the grass now staining crimson, yet Draconis was still in motion, spinning like a twister in a full rotation to his left as he pulled the sword from its new target. As he came around, Cerabrate saw the shield hand of his opponent closing in, but was still off balance. His speed was enhanced with [ _Haste_ ], how was this happening?!

The shield swung around and assisted by centrifugal force, smashed him full in the face. A sickening crack resounded throughout the courtyard. Cerabrate's jaw came unhinged from the blow and teeth flew from his lips. The strike spun him around and he fell to the ground in a disgraceful heap. The entire assault had only last five seconds.

 _A dervish . . . using the shield as a weapon? Punching with the sword in hand?_

Swordsmen who stood to the side wondered this as the lightning fast assault had utterly floored the kingdom's strongest warrior and taken his arm. The damage was devastating for just three strikes. Cerabrate groaned in agony as he barely moved from his prone position.

The populous watching grimaced, but this wasn't a beastman tearing apart a loved one, but a duel between swordsmen. Cerabrate had, impossibly, yet apparently; horrendously overreached himself and underestimated his foe.

All adventurers stood or sat stunned. Not a single Martial Art had been used by this Draconis Brightblade. Yet he out moved and struck a man under the effect of a [ _Haste_ ] spell so hard that he was now crippled. A missing arm and a broken jaw were not easily healed. Though there was saying of a healing spell that could reattach a lost limb if used within enough time of the dismemberment, that time would be long gone before this duel ended. The Holy Lord had doomed himself by not taking this red headed knight's warning and offer of different victory conditions.

Yet this man . . . obviously the victor . . . made no move to approach for the finishing blow. Instead he looked around to those present.

"By the terms of this duel, his death is now required for this matter to be settled in full. However, I would ask his teammates, his compatriots. His actions due to his position as your leader are also a strike against you via association. Only one of you attempted to stop this from occurring, and that is you; young lady."

He looked upward and everyone else did so as well to find Deidre staring hard at the wounded and pitiful form of her team's leader. Marko, who stood beside her watching the incident from above looked at Cerabrate with a frown and a deep, contemplative expression.

"Should I merely follow the terms of this duel? Or should I, for your sake as a token of respect to you, let this be enough?"

Deidre swallowed. He was asking her.. She would be the one to determine his fate. Was this a test? She knew that he had to be exceedingly powerful and the ease which he defeated Cerabrate was crazy. That did not mean that Cerabrate was a weakling, but it meant much more to her. They were all weaklings compared to this man. He was surrounded by strong fighters and magic casters that were of his power level. She could feel it in her bones. His two guards also held a vaguely similar aura of power. Black skulls. If they were like him, what did that mean for the rest of those he commanded?

Yet of his own admission, he had left someone under his command to guard Tildeus in his absence, ensuring their safety after the initial intervention. He wasn't foolish enough to believe that his one moment of rescue guaranteed that others attacks would never come. To her, he was being thorough and pragmatic . . . long sighted.

It also told her something else. He couldn't be everywhere at once. No one could. Even if he had trounced their leader utterly, Cerabrate's power could be used elsewhere. He was still stronger than other adventuring swordsmen, regardless of his arrogance.

However, she also felt like a change needed to happen within their own team. This incident had been an ugly eye opener for them and a hard reality check on the situation they fought in. She looked at Marko and could see something similar in his eyes. He gave her a nod. They seemed to be on the same wavelength.

Mustering up his will, she answered his question.

"As a member of Crystal Tear, I wish for this to be enough for this duel despite the terms set forth. The kingdom is still under invasion and it needs every sword that it can muster. Defeat should get his mind set back to a level appropriate of a defender. I ask mercy for the sake of the kingdom and its Queen!"

Her plea raised eyebrows all over. The man of fiery crimson hair nodded solemnly and sheathed his blade. They watched as he walked to the Queen and stopped a dozen feet away from her and bowed at the waist.

"Queen Draudillon. This duel is concluded. Please address the people as you like. I will be waiting within in order to continue our discussions."

She nodded once in a firm motion that brooked no argument. "Very well Lord Draconis. I thank you for considering the long term defense of the kingdom and its people. You and Lady Deidre have shown wisdom and temperance in your actions and words this day." She turned to the people gathered. "My precious citizens! This duel is concluded! Return to your homes and let no actions be made toward either party of this incident! You are dismissed."

Draconis retired through the doors of the castle before her and the Queen waiting quietly as the masses slowly trickled from the courtyard with much food for thought about what had happened today. The adventuring parties that had assembled either gave a crumpled Cerabrate piteous looks of scorn and disdain. Some others were more contemplative about what had happened and what it meant for the future of the kingdom's defense. Priests and priestesses that had gathered and heard about Father Yoland's recent fit of rants looked to the doors Draconis entered with hope renewing in their hearts. A few went to Cerabrate's side and began treating the man.

Despite what had been revealed, they were still healers first and foremost. The judgment of sins and pride could wait. It was as the Lady Deidre had said, the kingdom could not afford to the loss of strong swords and they had seen it as well, he was no weakling, but this man who the Holy Lord had challenged was stronger still.

The magic caster of Crystal Tear stood to the side in disbelief. How did this happen? How could a man just stand like a monolith against his leader's best and remained unscathed. It was absurd! Something began to fester in his heart. His ambitions as a magic caster, his pride as one. As an adamantite level caster and member of the strongest in the realm had suffered a savage blow with the defeat of his leader, his icon despite the difference in their professions.

The priest of their group sighed as he assisted his spiritual brothers and sisters in mending the most immediately concerning wounds of his leader. Their was little they could do for his arm for now, but he took up the severed limb and wrapped it in clean linen bandages. He did take note of the cleanness of the severing blow. Even though it had not been a proper sword stroke, the wound was so cleanly cut that he doubted that reattaching the limb even after the normal time window passed would not be impossible.

The issue would actually be how well Cerabrate recovered mentally from this one sided defeat. It wasn't an exact science medically, but mental damage from wounds and defeats could be more devastating that physical ones if the victim survived. There were a few medical practitioners that believed that some wounds and survivors would have been better off dying from their traumas that surviving due to the vegetative state some had been reduced to. Which side of the fence Cerabrate would recover on was the question now.

Regardless of all the "what ifs", one thing was abundantly clear. The duel between the Holy Lord and Knight Most Heavenly:

The Knight Most Heavenly was the absolute victor.

* * *

 **Character Profile 5**

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 **Deidre**

 **Position:** Ranger and Bard of Crystal Tear

 **Race:** Humanoid (Elf)

 **Residence:** Dragon Kingdom

 **Racial Levels: N/A** Humanoid

 **Class Levels:** Ranger = ?; Archer = ?; Bard = ?; etc.

An Elven woman who had been a wandering ranger and minstrel under the guise of a human woman. She met up with Marko and they had traveled to the Dragon Kingdom in search of employ. Meeting up with the Adventuring Guild's rising star; Cerabrate, their group garnered strength and reputation as their careers took flight. They had lost members and gained new ones before rising to Adamantite Rank. Her Talent [ _Scales of Power_ ] allows her the ability to "see" the power level difference between herself, and those her group faces. This give them a near unprecedented survival rate as far as adventurers go. She learned to adjust and live with it, as she unfortunately can never deactivate her power. Her skill in sneaking and archery are top notch due to her elven nature. Her singing voice is beauteous.

* * *

 **Character Profile 6**

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 **Marko Sealbrand**

 **Position:** Spearman of Crystal Tear

 **Race:** Human

 **Residence:** Dragon Kingdom

 **Racial Levels:** N/A Human

 **Class Levels:** Fighter = ?; Speaman = ?; Polearm Master = ?; etc.

A man who is began life as a nomad. He picked up the spear at an early age due to inherent advantages over swords, thought himself to be superior to most swordsmen. After an encounter with Southern Lands Sam-Arh-Eye and losing an eye because of his arrogance, he took to heart the lesson of never underestimating your opponent. It also gave him a permanent nervous tick whenever he hears or sees a katana. He secretly desires to find out what happened to that Sam-Arh-Eye and challenge him again in order to prove to himself more than anything that he has overcome his deficiency. An open minded and relatively relaxed man by nature, he acts like a brother to Deidre and knows her secret of her elven nature. A professional, he puts up with much of Cerabrates issues until his defeat by Draconis. The incident only serves to remind him just how big the world really is power wise.

* * *

 **Now for the Review Response Section!**

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 **Utziluth:** I am aware of the pamphlet translation for the Overlord Movie wherein, Deep Darkness Dragon Lord is mentioned in addition to a few others. Though it is mentioned in officially released content, I personally stick to the mindset of, "If it isn't in the official LN release, it isn't canon." Things can drastically change before he gets to the point where they appear . . . **_IF_** they even make it to his final draft and publication. That's the kicker about releasing teaser information. It's just that. Teasers. It very well may be the case. If so, fantastic if he can deliver it well to us and show the Guardians that they aren't all powerful, and hand their butts to them on a platter a few times.

That being said, if Shalltear is perfectly matched against DDDL, then Draconis, by hilarious coincidence is actually going to steamroll him due to his own build and powers. Though his special class would automatically warn DDDL that crossing him and fighting is _extremely bad_. Platinum Dragon Lord is up for debate, but we don't know the overall actual levels and abilities of previous Players of the past in the New World. Items alone can't win wars, though they certainly DO help. We shall see! :D

 **peroroncino:** Glad you are enjoying the story! I dare say Draconis will reveal his true form at some point. Draudillon would probably be there but no promises. She deeply respects him for his help and aide, perhaps she may develop feelings for him, but he IS married quite happily to Artorias, who is quite powerful herself.

 **MadDan90:** Thanks for the Happy New Years PM! XD Hope this chapter met your expectations or maybe even surprised you! Not all denizens of the New World in my fic are going to die . . . though not all will live through the whole thing either . . . :P

Writing combat chapters tend to add LOTS of words to the count and because combat is hectic, at times perspective switches A LOT. That can be a huge obstacle in writing if you are doing it from a fixed POV. Most of the time I end up writing Third Person Omniscient perspective in order to encapsulate as much as possible without bogging down and confusing readers with POV shifts. Thanks for the reviews and follows!

 **RyuujiVantek:** Unfortunately, death has not called for him yet . . . perhaps he'll reform . . . maybe? Maybe not? Glad you're looking forward to the Artorias and her Knights moments of the story! I think you'll enjoy where I've thrown them. It'll make certain events even more poignant. Muahahahaha! XD

 **UndeadLord22:** Taaadaaaah!

 **XXX1994:** I am taking a bit of creative licensing with Midgardsomer on this one. I'm roughly using Final Fantasy XIV's Heavensward storyline legend of him and his First Brood and spinning things. Given how long lived dragons are, some stories have them being neigh immortal to age related death, other just extraordinarily long lived and yet he and his First Brood are like myths to them. That should tell you how old THEIR legends are. As such long lived survivors of the Eight Greed Kings passed down legends to others interested dragon-wise, she would have heard about it at least loosely from Brilliance Dragon Lord.

In my moments of YGGDRASIL, he was one of the World Enemies that Avalon, Draconis, and their friends ( **not including Ainz Ooal Gown's members** ) fought and it was the catalyst for his special class **_Emissary of the World Dragon_**. Given the obsession the YGGDRASIL devs had with anything with the word "WORLD" in it getting OP as ballz . . . welll . . . there you have it. Given that none of the AOG members fought Midgardsomer, Momonga has no clue about much of Draconis's new powers.

From my understanding, much of Draudillon's child form was out of being forced to do so via pressure from Prime Minister and Cerebrate. It's one reason she drinks so much wine. That was mentioned in the LN. She does care about her people too, as she does have an option to end the bestmen kingdom invasion, but the cost of that Wild Magic is so high that she is not willing to sacrifice her people to do so. Draconis will be giving her another option to make use of.

 **Zandaino:** Apologies again for shortening your name! :P Yeaah, I think he's one of the few characters in the New World other than a certain stupid Paladin that a lot of readers want to die horribly. Not yet here. Good character development can turn initially hated characters into loved ones, or just ripen the satisfaction when they finally do get their final reckoning! Thanks for keeping with my story!

 **PervySageChuck:** Uuuh . . . It's special tar that doesn't stick or work against those that would enjoy that kind of weird stuff . . . Anyway! Thanks for the laughs and reviews!


	7. Chapter 6 A Pair of Queens

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is owned by Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official releases!**

 **Well, first week of the New Year down, whoooole lot more to go. That said, Season II of Overlord started! Though part of me thinks that Season Two will end around the time of Sebas finding Tsuare Ninya at the least.**

 **I LOVE Zesshi Zetsumei's artwork in the opening episode! That being said, she crazy! Don't wanna think of the night had if you were the guy to beat her and then be the object of her baby fantasies . . . O.O . . .**

 **Here we are! Artorias and her company getting some attention now! Have fun!**

 **As always read and review. It's how I stay motivated!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: A Pair of Queens**

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Artorias Faye Pendragon . . .

That was her identity now. The Dragon Blessed woman sat on her throne, her guild's throne. The chambers were massive and held grand vault ceilings. Among them were an array of reflective windows and crystals that arrayed the floor leading up to the last portion before her throne with elegant colored patterns that shifted with the sun's travel across the sky.

As beautiful as that was, seeing it at night during a clear sky with a full moon was even more wonderful to her. Banners of Pendragon Blue draped the supports from top to floor. The throne room was 65 feet high, 40 feet wide and 250 feet long. The banners stretched 50 feet from top to bottom. Upon them was a dragon rising on its hind legs and roaring to the sky. It was woven with fine gold thread and each banner was woven from blue Emeraltite. The sapphire like metal glimmered softly.

The windows at each vaulted segment of the ceiling provided air circulation. Each zenith of the vaults contained a chandelier of gold and blue luminous rubies that exuded soft light during night hours. The floors were pure white heart stone that was polished to a smooth sheen. From the main entrance to the raised steps to the throne was a single piece carpet of lush, soft woven fabric. The carpet was red and silver, a contrast to the blue and gold.

The chamber also contained three floors, each of them surrounding and overlooking the base floor where her throne was situated. Stairs leading to them lay outside the throne room itself. There were no chairs or seats above to sit on. One had to stand in order to view the proceedings from above. Nobles were assigned the first floor, with merchants and craftsmen to the second, and the common folk who wished to attend and witness proceedings to the third. This was crafted to be symbolic.

Nobles of the people had roles of leadership and thus need to be part of the direct proceedings. Merchants and craftsmen were looked up to literally and figuratively by the nobility to help carry out the decisions of the proceedings and concerns of the public. Finally, the common folk who attended were ultimately who made them what they were. It was that group of citizens that made up the bulk of the nation and therefore, the power they all wielded. Without them, they were nothing. The common folk were most looked up to because none of them would have their positions and the meaning behind them would be empty and worthless without the people to back them. The citizenry were the ultimate concern of those with power and ability. It was a stark reminder and warning to not forget who lead and served who.

She looked up to the common folk standing far above her and she smiled forlornly. She, as queen was to serve their best interests and protect them. To her, and her friends, they were the servants, not the common folk. Serving to protect and ensure their safety and happiness. It was something they all had agreed upon when they made the guild. Being either retired or honorably discharged military veterans, they had served in horrible battles and not everything had been clear or moral. Here though – they all had agreed – would be a level of civility even in battle and war. It was their escape from the hard lives they lived.

Now it was their reality . . .

"You Majesty, we have collected the reports from all the outer residents and can say with certainty that our people find themselves in a situation we could not have predicted."

 _Isn't that why I sent out scouts to survey our immediate surroundings?_

"Somehow, castle Pendragon and it's surrounding city and immediate land spanning five kilometers in radius has been transplanted in the middle of an enormous mass of sea water. We can see mainland in the distance, but have not had our pegasus knights conduct a search."

Gathered nobility and merchants alike all nodded in agreement. The common folk above turned to each other and murmured in concern and intrigue. Craftsmen, knights who guarded the throne room, and regulars were also nodding as they heard the report. The man speaking was Frederick Grayson; a knight commander of the Gryphon Talon Company of knights. He was one Gawain's NPCs and a skilled defender. Part of his duties for the Guild HQ was the supervision of the scouting patrols of the Guild. That included a platoon of Pegasus and Gryphon Harriers.

A very real and dangerous threat, but not meant from full engagements, they were casters and sky healers accompanied by aerial archers. A lethal combination and some would say overkill for scouts.

At the news many, including Lancelot, Mordred, and Gareth frowned in concern. This would prove fatal to the people if they really were stuck in the middle of a salt water body. Artorias realized this as well. She frowned and tapped the armrest of her throne idly.

"Were there signs of civilization on the coastline?" Frederick nodded as he answered her.

"There were your Majesty. The fliers spied a coastal town to our east that have fortified buildings and walls along with uniformed guardsmen and women. We presumed them to both be of the country's militia or formal military and thus did not make any attempts to make contact for fear of approach being interpreted as a hostile assault."

The three Knights of the Round glanced at each other in concern. Another nation within patrol sighting distance and therefore, likely visible by both parties. If there was no land mass where they where now, then their sudden appearance could be construed as a sudden invasion into territorial waters. Not that they could do much about that now . . .

"Thank you for your report Ser Grayson." The man bowed respectfully before stepping back to allow their Queen to bring the next concern of Avalon to the floor. "Craftsman Seneschal, are you present?"

From the second story floor, a man's voice immediately answer her call. He waved to attract attention towards him as he bowed.

"Aye! I am present your Majesty! How may we serve today?"

Speaking on behalf of the other craftsmen and women of the Queendom, the others who answered to him stood expectantly. They were nervous and anxious about their situation, but this was a concern for them all. Of course they would do their utmost. If anything, for the pride of their livelihoods!

"I desire you and your finest to work with the Mage's Academy in creating a system to allow the sea water surrounding our now island home to flow through our limited landmass after it is purified of its salt content to be safely used as fresh water for all to use. I will have a scribe send the commission officially sealed in my name. Lucretia Merces of the Mage Academy, is this acceptable to you?"

A woman with blond hair tied up in a fraying bun and willowy bangs stepped forward on the base floor level with a bow. Her hair was tipped in emerald green and her skin was a golden tan. She wore what vaguely resembled a three layered kimono, with the second layer so sheer it was translucent. The outer layer was rich Pendragon Blue and the inner layer was vivid emerald green. She wore close toed sandals and carried two items with her at all times. First: was her elegant folding fan of pure white feathers. Second – and most importantly – was her tome. It was actually composed of two separate tomes opposing each other in facing. When opened, it was massively wide. It was a double locked cover and when held under her arm, it stretched from hand to armpit.

Lucretia Merces was Gareth's NPC and a powerful one. One of the Nobles of Avalon and a most respected figure in the courts and common folk alike, she was elegant as she was whimsical. Even though she was not the Headmaster of the Mage Academy, she was one of its deans. Her power and position allowed her to answer for the Headmaster if addressed directly.

"If the Headmaster finds the terms acceptable we would be honored to labor alongside our craftsmen and women. I doubt he would disagree given the emergency we face."

Nods went around the throne room as a whole. The sudden change in environment had reeked panic all across Avalon. Even more so when The Lair, the revered home of their Queen's lover and guardian ally of Avalon had also vanished along with his mountain home.

"I thank you Lady Merces. Father Michael a moment of your time please."

The leader of the Cathedral of Bahamut stepped forward. He was surprisingly young at thirty, but learned and wise. The NPC of Bedivere smiled kindly at his Queen.

"Of course my Queen." She returned his smile. Bedivere had been a huge help to everyone in the guild and had been like a blood brother to Draconis. He had been a chaplain IRL, and had helped Draconis come to grips with a great many things while still somehow being respectful of his spiritual beliefs. Draconis immensely respected the man for the non-invasive treatment.

"I know that it imposes much on the members of the cloth, but until those endeavors are complete, I fear that farming and harvests will suffer in the meantime. Would it be too much in asking for food and water for the masses?"

"Ah, I understand. Yes, it shall be done. I believe that the gracious and mighty Bahamut would approve of such an action for the sake of the people."

The common folk above sighed in relief. Food shortages and lack of drinkable water was a fear that this situation had brought on first and foremost. They knew that the food and drink provided by magic was not exactly the tastiest of meals, but it was nourishing and not something the church would struggle with. It was meant to provide for those on hard times, and any who had come to the church in need had never been turned away provided you came in sincerity and good faith. Even the nobles and merchants understood the merits behind it, even if they cringed at the thought of rather bland food and drink for a time.

Artorias nodded her thanks and then looked back to Frederick.

"Ser Frederick, keep your scouts on patrol around the skies above Avalon and venture no further than half a kilometer from the land we now find ourselves on. Rebuff any attempts by outsiders to probe our lands via [ _Message_ ] and barring that, a loud and clear verbal warning. Mages who are assisting these patrols are to utilize [ _Misdirection_ ] on those that will not heed the warning. If [ _Misdirection_ ] does not work, they are to be escorted away by members of Lady Gareth's wings of Aerial Knights and Mages."

Gareth nodded and bowed as Frederick did. Gareth glanced up from her bow to her dear friend.

"What if said people are of this country's ruling body and wish to open talks?"

"Have them send me a missive with their seal that I may know it is a genuine gesture and not a ploy and respectfully escort them away from Avalon. Tell them we are in a state of emergency if that is what it takes. I trust your judgment Beaumains."

She smiled openly and bowed her head again. "As you wish Queen Artorias."

Artorias looked about the height, breadth, and length of the throne room.

"Are there any other concerns or details that should be brought before this gathering of the people?"

A young woman and what seemed to be her sibling waved to her from the third floor's railing. Artorias took notice and nodded her consent. The young woman curtsied and spoke, her voice clear with concern and worry.

"Your Gracious Majesty, what of Lord Draconis? Is Avalon truly bereft of our guardian?"

Nods of similar concern went around the throne room as it hummed with concerned parties on all levels of the throne room. Just as Artorias and her Knights of the Round were adored, so too was Draconis, her lover and his own contingent of mages and warriors. Some of whom were citizens of their country. He had come to their aid on several occasions whenever other nations (Guilds) came to combat them and try to take over. It was like an extra assurance for them all. None of them doubted their Queen and her Knights of Round, but Draconis was like a favored heirloom. He was beloved and familiar. Artorias did not blame her for the question, for she felt the same being apart from him even if it had only been a day so far.

"Rest assured young lady, and all present! Draconis Brightblade may be separated from us, but he has been in touch." Cries of relief echoed throughout the chamber. "That being put forth, he is an unknown distance from us. Like we are getting our bearings and gathering our wits about us, so too is the Knight Most Heavenly gathering his own. We find ourselves in a New World, and as such we must learn what we can in order to find our place here. Have no doubt that he shall return, but his home has been transported."

Heads on all floors could be seen either nodding or thinking deeply on their Queen's words. None liked the implication, that he was here, yet not close by. It meant that they would need to fend for themselves without their dragon guardian's comforting presence nearby. It wasn't an unheard of occasion, but it was a bit dispiriting. At least he had been in touch though, which was a consoling bit of information. The dragon knight knew of their situation and shared in their predicament.

"If there is nothing else, this gathering is adjourned. Ser Lancelot, Mordred, and Lady Gareth, remain here please. I would speak with you. Guardsmen, thank you for your duties, you may retire for the day."

All gathered bowed or curtsied and began to file out of the throne room as the Knights of the Round approached the throne. They all waited until the final person had left, and all the doors had closed. After a moment of silence, Artorias slumped in her seat a bit and sighed wearily. Her friends gave her sympathetic looks and Gareth walked up to her and patted her shoulder in comfort.

"Good job Artorias. I know that can't have been easy."

"I'm not a good public speaker, that was always Draconis's motif."

Lancelot and Mordred both chuckled. Draconis was a good speaker. His job helping VA members recover from their traumas and worries from the war had made sure of that. Putting that issue aside, they had the protection of their guild and its NPCs on the brain.

"Regardless, now you will have to get better at it. We're here for you Artorias." She gave them a thankful nod even though she wore a tired expression.

"Thanks. What do you think of all this? Suddenly being in a New World from YGGDRASIL and in our character avatars no less."

Gareth smiled cheekily as she twirled in place. Her long blond hair swirled as she beamed at them.

"I think it's great. We can do things that we couldn't, we have people who adore us. More importantly, people who truly are grateful and thankful for the service we perform for them. It is what we dreamed of after all."

They all nodded at that. It was true and it did feel good to be be genuinely thanked for their service. Something that had not happened to many of them after the Arcology War. Many of them had been derided and scorned as death dealers and little else. Perhaps they had all been a bit naive in desiring gratitude for their service, or maybe it had been over expecting on their part. Regardless, things were different now.

"How much of a fantasy world do you think this is?" Mordred asked as he folded his arms across his chest. His silvery armor gleamed with his red and gold surcoat that made for a crisp and elegant armor design.

"No idea, though I think it's safe to say that whatever the case may be, we need to be prepared. Can we have anyone learn to plumb the depths of the waters to see if there is any sentient water life like mermen or water sprites? Getting to be on good terms with them with drastically strengthen our location."

Lancelot spoke with calm deductions. The rest of them hummed as they thought about his words. It carried good, solid reasoning. They were at sea and surrounded on all sides by water. Defending against invaders by sea and air was difficult with a mostly land locked fighting force. Even with their air forces, they had no navy power at all. That would have to change in some way. Lancelot's idea had tremendous merit.

"I agree with that Lancelot. Please see who we can put to work on that endeavor."

They all nodded and prepared to depart for the day.

* * *

 **Hoburns, Holy Roble Kingdom**

* * *

Calca Bessarez was enjoying a cup of tea on one of the castle's outer balconies with Remedios and Kelart Custodios when a paladin came up to them breathing heavily. Kelart and Calca both waited for the man to catch his wind before speaking. Remedios half glared at him for just barging in.

"Your Holiness, I bring news from couriers from the western Port City of Rimun!"

"Calm yourself good man. What news pray tell? I assume it to be urgent given your haste."

The paladin straightened and cleared his throat politely.

"The governor of Rimun has sent news that yesterday after the midday hour, an island spontaneously appeared in the middle of the sea toward the horizon and bore a tower made of azure blue crystal that stretches into the sky!"

Calca looked to Kelart for her opinion. As the younger Custodio sister thought on what the claim could portend, the elder spoke up.

"An island just appeared out of nowhere? The governor drank too much."

Calca gave her a look that told her to be quiet. Remedios took on a look of contrition, but the Holy Queen was unsure if she really meant it. Not like it anyone expected much out of the elder sister. She was stupid. There was a difference in thinking and ignorance and she redefined the definition of the word. In truth, Calca trusted the younger sister more in matters of the unknown that could possibly be magical in nature. Remedios was good for protection and fighting . . . that was it.

On the other hand Kelart despite her shifty look and attitude at times, understood the underlying meaning of words and conversation and could cast Tier IV magic officially. A clever lie in that she could actually cast Tier V, including the vaunted and holy _[Raise Dead_ ].

Yet Calca overlooked their flaws and held them dear. Regardless of the troubles that came with them being her personal guards and trusted friends, she relied on them. Rather heavily.

"Elder sister, the governor of Rimun does not drink to excess. He is quite reasonably headed and such a thing would not have called for a runner to be sent here without it being true. They know better than to make up so a story and expect to not be scolded if not found true."

"Oh . . ." Remedios deadpanned. The paladin messenger held his tongue though internally he was wondering how such a person had been made Commander of the Order. Still, he was in the presence of the Holy Queen. It was not his place to say such a thing on his mind.

Calca Bessarez shook her head and turned her attention back to the messenger as the younger sister quietly, yet heatedly scolded her elder.

"My apologies for the outburst soldier. Are their details regarding this sudden land mass and the crystalline structure?"

The Paladin nodded and began speaking. He spoke of how the air surrounding the waters shimmered and glittered as earth rose up from the waters in a huge mass before the a shining light shot to the sky like a pillar. All activity on the ports had ceased and daily activity in the town had halted altogether as every resident watched in awe. The light thinned and disappeared, leaving a beautiful crystal tower that reached to the heavens in its wake. At its base looked to be some kind of city, walled far better than the port city of Rimun. Lush green grasses and a small forested area also had grown instantly along with this mysterious new location.

Before anyone could organized any boats or other vessels to travel out and investigate this new land mass, the people had eyed something that set the people on guard. Pegasi! Gryphons! Magical beasts! Flew over the waters a short distance from the coast of the new island and one archer on his watch swore to the Four Great Gods that he saw riders on them! They did not approach, but flew about the island in long, slow circles before returning to the Crystal Tower they now called it.

As he spoke, Kelart's eyes grew wide in amazement. Calca had never seen the young woman so awed by a report. She could tell that Kelart was already intrigued by the prospect of magical beasts, much less the people who had so many tamed! If such creatures existed and were being utilized as mounts, what did that mean for the city as a whole? She herself – if she was being honest with herself – was also curious about such a place.

Remedios frowned as she tried to understand the significance and merely nodded. She was imitating her friend and sister because in reality she knew nothing about what this meant for them.

"I see. Thank you for your report. We shall make preparations after discussing a plan of action. Send back word to the governor of Rimus that he should expect another message from us in the near future."

The man saluted and bowed before taking his leave.

Kelart tapped the armrest of her chair in thought. All of this was too fantastical to believe, yet she knew beyond doubt that the people of Rimun were sound of mind and sharp of eye. She definitely wanted to see this tower with her own eyes. She looked to Calca and spoke.

"Calca, I want to see this tower myself. If pegasi and gryphons are truly flying through their skies, then the city at the base of the Tower might be something from legend."

Calca nodded in agreement. Such a thing appearing out of the blue was unheard of. It reminded her of the tales told of older times and the flying castle fortress of the Eight Greed Kings. Was this something similar? It couldn't be, but what if it was? Were these people within those walls hostile? Evil? Good? Human? Demi Human? There was just too much yet unknown to them.

"I agree Kelart. Shall we make plans to travel to Rimun and see this sight for ourselves?"

"Calca! I can't agree to this!" Remedios voiced, her volume nearly at a shout. Both of the other women looked at her in confusion. "Islands don't appear out of nowhere. The people of Rimun are working too hard, either that or not that busy to come up with tales like that."

"Sister, if they are true then we would be failing out duty to the people to make sure that they are protected if this place is hostile. If they aren't hostile then we should prevent hostilities from emerging in the first place."

"Rimun is a big port town right? So our paladins and navy should be enough. It's not like those demi-human scum can swim in the sea."

"Remedios!" Calca raised her voice. This was one of the few things they disagreed upon to the point of it making Calca question her friendship with Remedios at times. True, her single minded nature had been a sort of oasis for her, but recently she had begun to wonder about how wise a decision it had been to make her so close of a guard.

"What? Calca, the demi-humans do nothing but attack and kill our people! They have nothing that we need and they're savages."

Kelart stood from her seat and looked her sister in the face.

"Sister, I don't believe that the case here. Pegasi and gryphons are told to be extraordinarily picky about riders. I don't believe many demi-humans could qualify under their extremely selective terms."

Remedios nodded as she was told this, but she didn't understand what her sister was talking about. What was a pegasi? She'd heard stories and rumors about gryphons from adventurers, but never put much stock in them. After all, adventurers were just sellswords and mages for hire under an organized front called the guild. Only a handful even had a worthy purpose about them, like Blue Rose or Crystal Tear. Everyone else had no direction or purpose other than coin. She was justice and the protector of the Holy Queen, the Treasure of Roble!

Calca stood as well, prompting Remedios to do so as well.

"I wish to see this Crystal Tower city for myself and learn of its people. If they are willing to talk then I would do so for the sake of the people. I would truly hope to become friends with this new city. Perhaps they could be of help to us as we could be for them."

With those words, she walked back inside and the Custodios sisters followed close behind. One looking forward to seeing something new and potentially enlightening. The other with suspicion and paranoia.

* * *

 **Avalon**

* * *

Artorias sat at her desk on the hanging veranda of her office. The piece of furniture was massive at 15 feet across and a full five feet deep. It was black marble topped and held all kinds of missives and paperwork. Parchment was strewn open with her notes, reports, and orders for her people. Across from her was a woman of unearthly beauty. A nymph of the fey race that guarded her office and acted as an assistant secretary. At the foot of the desk lay another NPC of Avalon. Cavall, a faithful hunting hound that they had made.

The nymph placed a fresh cup of tea next to her liege. Given the blessings of the Lady of the Lake, many fey that surrounded Avalon held the Queen in high regard. She was honored that the Queen had made her to be a personal guard and helper in her castle. She was absolutely gorgeous and any man would be attracted to her even if it wasn't sexual in nature. Yet she was not to be underestimated.

Artorias had made her as a level 100 NPC with both managerial and combat duties. A combat maid/butler in a way. Likewise, anyone underestimating the hound at her desk would also regret it. Cavall, Arthur's favorite hunting dog was also a level 100 NPC with nothing but combat classes. As if attacking her alone would be wise . . . she could defend herself well enough, but RP was fun in this way.

Cavall may have been a hound in the tales of King Arthur, but this was no mere dog. If anything he wasn't actually a hunting hound in the traditional sense. The devs hadn't put a hunting dog as a thing in the game proper, so they improvised. The "hound" was actually a Hoarhound pup. A Fenrir class Ice Wolf pup that had a surprising amount of natural bonuses and traits that made his combat classes all the more lethal.

Said "pet" snoozed content as his mistress worked. He knew the scent of the nymph well and recognized her as a friendly helper. She also provided him his food too, so there was that.

"My Queen, you have been at it for over an hour and a half non-stop. Please have some tea and relax a bit."

Moving her brunette locks from her face, Artorias sighed as she leaned back in her chair, her back popped as she did so. Artorias's dark scaled tail swished back and forth as she stretched her limbs. It was an interesting feeling, having a tail. The nymph attendant moved behind her liege and gently rubbed her neck to soothe her aches.

"Ah, thank you kindly Evalyn. This whole situation has caused more paperwork than I anticipated."

"Not at all Queen Pendragon. You work tirelessly for the people. I have bore witness to it on countless occasion. Your knights too, work so hard for everyone in the Queendom. You rarely take time to yourself."

Her mistress sighed as knots were worked out. True, a simple healing spell could do it for them, but this was more satisfying. Picking up the tea cup, Artorias took a sip and smiled. It was fragrant and soft on the palate.

"Tell me Evalyn, and speak true. Should I merely fortify ourselves here or try to bargain for mainland territory for the people to live on? We lack a lot of the land we once did."

It was true that they had lost lands surrounding the city, but few citizens had been lost due to the festivals and celebrations that Artorias, her Round Table Knights, and Lord Draconis had hosted a mere day prior to this incident. Most had remained within the city walls in revelry, so while some poor families had lost loved ones, many of them counted their blessings that it had not been far worse.

Evalyn pondered her liege's question for a moment before giving her answer.

"I think for the long term, it would be wise to acquire some sizable territory on the mainland for farming and living space. The city is large and can hold everyone for now, but it can't be kept up. Were you giving thoughts of opening diplomacy with whatever nation that port city belongs to?"

Artorias nodded as she looked out upon the city she lead. It's people hard at work carrying out her decree to handle the water situation. She could see aqueducts being constructed and elaborate magical constructions being assembled for converting sea water to fresh water before flowing down the new constructions being created.

"So impressive . . . such a thing used to take months if not years to construct. Yet with magic and cooperation, they are achieving it within mere days."

Looking to the parchment containing the city plans and the adjustments needed to provide a three path aqueduct from coasts to the center of the city. Effectively spitting the city into three sectors, it ensured that all of the city would have equidistant travel to fresh water outlets along each side of the branching waterways. Mordred had approved, but brought up something just as important, waste management. They couldn't just dump it into the ocean they now found themselves on. However, yet again, magic had provided a solution.

The collective council of Lucretia Merces and several others of the Mage Academy had come up with it when she had summoned them about the concern. A separate, fully isolated line of waterways would deposit waste to a special building with would be set up with dungeon traps of high level. Said traps would be continuous spells of [ _Disintegrate_ ] and [ _Prestidigitation_ ]. [ _Purify Water_ ] would also be utilized in order to stop polluting their surrounding waters.

The Lady of the Lake had approved of the action and over the past three days, gone about finding water spirits and other sentient water folk around the ocean to speak to. The merfolk that had been found had been keen to an alliance seeing the Lady of the Lake and her beauty and wisdom. They had looked over the idea as a group and their leader had also given his approval. They had started off with great relations as their concern for polluting the waters had made them far better than the port city to their east as he had said.

He had also given them a warning in good faith.

" _That city belongs to a realm calling themselves the Roble Holy Kingdom. They have a paladin order, but they are anti-demi-human. The Holy Queen does not share the views of her people about demi-humans, but the prejudice is there and fierce in their order. Take care, as I see you have a mix of human and demi-human living in peace."_

The merman leader's warning had been taken into full consideration. Lancelot in particular was concerned. With multiple races among their populous, relations with this Holy Roble Kingdom could be strained before talks even began. At this point, Gareth had spoken up reminding them that this Holy Queen was not like her countrymen in mindset. As a whole, the decided to stop worrying about it for the moment and pray for the best. Too much fretting would do none of them any good. One matter at a time.

Evalyn noticed that her mistress had relaxed and nodded in satisfaction. The Queen could not afford to work herself into the sickbed. She would not allow it if she could help it. Working hard was one thing, but making oneself exhausted to the point of illness was never good.

* * *

 **Pegasus Stables**

* * *

In another wing of the castle, the pegasus stables in their lofty perches of the Crystal Castle were busy with female knights tacking on barding and other equipment for their rounds of aerial patrol. In particular was Gareth. She patted her winged steed Shadow Star for the star-like patch of dark fur between her eyes. The magical creature nuzzled her hand affectionately. An alicorn with a bit of a wild spirit, she laughed as her favorite mount whinnied at her in anticipation of flying today.

"Alright, alright. Calm down Shadow Star. I need to make sure your properly fitted."

The other pegasus knights watched her work on her mount if they weren't on duty. Those who went about girding their own mounts were to be Gareth's escorts today. The Knight of the Round was dear to them not only because of her status as a Pegasus Knight and trusted of the Queen, but in her sisterly mentoring and interaction with them all. She was strict and demanded no less than one's best, but was compassionate and encouraging as well. The ideal superior with just the right amount of soft silk to match her steel resolve and experience.

Whenever she rode out, a small war played out with the sisterhood of sky borne knights. Bids and offers were made to exchanged duties to ride out with the Round Knight. It was considered an honor and privilege both to ride the same sky in the same group as Lady Gareth. There was only one Pegasus Knight allowed to fly by her side without question.

"Your partner is quite spirited today is she not milady?"

Heads turned to see Lady Claire, her honey amber hair held up in a short ponytail, approaching. She waved at the other pegasus knights and smiled. Claire was of the nobility and the creation of Gareth's as well. A level 95 NPC Sky Warden, she was an aerial tank. Unlike Lucretia who was created as a tactical offensive mage, Claire was Gareth's bastion and shield maiden. A title she held with pride and few had gotten through her defenses. She hadn't thought of what her final five levels should have been, so they were in reserve. Now however, Gareth thought hard on what she should teach Claire in order to get her to the max level . . .

 _There is that rare tank role class . . . hmmm . . . I'll talk with Mordred about it later._

"Yes, Shadow Star is pretty rambunctious today isn't she? I wonder if I should let her go wild for a bit and just go along with her whims for a bit?"

Claire paled a little at the thought. The last time Shadow Star had gone 'wild' Gareth had shaved a few years off her life. The aerial maneuvers the winged steed had pulled off would have thrown any other rider in the kingdom to their doom below.

"Surely milady is jesting?"

"Oh Claire, relax a bit. It was a jest. This isn't a leisure ride, but a patrol." Claire sighed in relief. Some of the girls nearby giggled at their byplay. It was well known that Claire could be a bit wound up by Gareth's spirit.

"I assume you're ready to take wing?"

Claire nodded as Gareth finished her preparations with Shadow Star. Despite the desire to assist her Lady, she knew Gareth would fume over the idea. Her Lady was very particular about her mount and its barding. Any rider with their mount was, but Gareth was extra finicky about it.

Satisfied with her preparations, Gareth whistled loudly, garnering the attention of all in the stables. Those who would be riding with her today swiftly formed up.

"Ladies, today's patrol will be over the eastern waters of our new coastline. I do not think that I need to remind you all about the rules of engagement that Queen Artorias has put forth." Nods went around the stables. The Queen had made that abundantly clear. "Be mindful not just of the water route, but the skyline as well. We still know little about what aerial creatures roam the skies here."

They all voiced their understanding. Gareth looked around and smiled as she nodded in approval.

"Good, those flying today, get moving!"

The pegasus riders scrambled to their pegasi and Gareth effortlessly mounted her faithful steed. She nudged Shadow Star forward and the alicorn whinnied as she made her way to the launching pier. Galloping off the edge, pure white wings caught the warm updraft there, permanently enchanted there even in cold winter months to ensure no drop accidents flying out of the stables which were housed so far up.

Shortly after she leveled out in her ride, others began to form up on her. She could see Claire and her heavier armored pegasus out of the corner of her eye. The magical hooves of their steeds caught the air and propelled them forward. Wings spread allowed them to glide for several meters before hooves caught air no different than ground and soil to keep them aloft.

It was a liberating feeling in the skies. Especially skies so clear, so untouched by pollution. So brilliant and blue and stretching for thousands of miles . . . she sighed in joy before beginning a slow turn about that would start them on their patrol for the day. For now it was time to work. Even knowing that, a smile cracked on her face.

Her squadron of fliers were eight in number and they flew in a double wedge formation with one higher than the other and farther in front. Patrol was officially started.

Down below, Mordred watched them take flight as he handled coastal defense creation. They had made excellent progress, the coastal shores did not feature many beaches. Most of them were cliff faces. The few beaches that he noticed they had were to be preserved from military use. It would provide relaxing points for the populous and agreements with the merfolk ensured that the waters immediately close by were clear of predators and other dangerous sea creatures like poisonous jelly fish or coral stingers. He could see a few merfolk waving at him as he monitored the construction of magical barricades and watchtowers.

He returned their wave with one of his own. A flotilla defense was being erected off the shore and cliff line with their help. The merfolk alliance had agreed to help them in return for trade and peaceful relations. It was something they had all jumped at with relief. Among the alliance was not just merfolk, but some of the other sea fairing sentient creatures. It was while he thought on this that the merman who had initiated contact with them to begin with appeared with a wave.

"Hail land friend Mordred! Do the waves favor you this day?"

He bowed and returned the greeting.

"Hail sea friend Lywellen. The waves are good today. How goes the flotilla creation?"

Lywellen was of average merfolk stature according to his own words. He stood around five foot eight inches and had scale covered legs and arms. His back was completely covered in ocean green scales. Swimming fins protruded from his elbows, knees and feet. Webbing stretched between his fingers and toes. His chest was bare skinned like a human, but his neck was covered in scales and held gill slits. However, the physiology of the merfolk fascinated Mordred. They had gills, but lungs as well so they could function in or out of water without a care in that respect.

The merman wore a fine robe of some sort of seaplant weave that did not hinder water movement, yet seemed like satin when out of it. It was nothing like what Mordred had expected to be honest. There was a definite degree of cultured refinement that he was certain was lost on other landlocked races. Not terribly surprising was their preferred weapon for both hunting and warfare should it come to it, the spear, or more appropriately, the trident.

"You're mages and craftsmen are remarkable!" He beamed with open enthusiasm. "They are adapting to our advice quickly and efficiently! I look forward to future days with your Queendom!"

They both laughed. "I am happy to hear that Lywellen, but will they hold up to the storm months that you mentioned? Turbulent seas are pretty punishing on such structures. Never mind the risk to the people manning them."

"To be honest? Probably not, but that isn't for another two moon tides. At this rate, they will be more than prepared."

Mordred merely nodded and took note of the time frame. As he looked back out over the ocean waters to the coast of the mainland in the far distance, he sighed as another boat was redirected back toward the port city. A cluster of fliers circled in a 'hunter's circle' as they called it. No doubt the boat had been warned to turn back and the helmsman ignored the warning, prompting [ _Redirection_ ] to activate. The spell would cause the target of the spell to move onward back the way he or she came without alerting them to the change in direction until they were already well away from the spell area.

So far none had broken through the spell, so no one had to risk actually forcing a turn around just yet, but to him and he was sure, to Gareth and the others, it was all a matter of _when_ rather than _if_.

Lywellen took notice of Mordred's gaze and frowned, a low grumble emitted from his gills. It was the sound of aggravation.

"Another surface vessel of Roble. It seems many are curious to your appearance. Your Queen is wise to consolidate her people and its well being before dealing with them."

Mordred had understood a bit of the merfolks's warning about the Kingdom, but he was curious about a few details that had not been mentioned.

"Lywellen, I have a few questions about that Kingdom if you have the time."

"Certainly, be warned like the reef life around sharks though, I am a bit prejudiced in my opinions. They have not mingled well with us in the past."

Such honesty was refreshing for him and he was glad the sea faring denizens were rather objective, granted how could they not be? The seas and oceans held no borders and also hid dangers untold. Remaining objective and honest was their way of survival with other tribes and sentient oceanic beings down below the surface.

"Very well. It's almost lunch time for us land dwellers though. Would you mind talking over a meal?"

"I believe I could catch us something from the mother ocean to dine on." He smiled, a pair of sharp teeth exposed themselves. Mordred wasn't disturbed by it, after all, several races in Avalon also held fangs and sharp teeth. Artorias was dragon blooded and so her fangs where larger than normal. They also had canine like races among their populous.

Besides, seafood fresh caught and prepared sounded great. He patted his new friend on the shoulder and laughed.

"That sounds fantastic! Lead the way."

Lunch would be interesting, he was sure of that.

* * *

 **Rimun, Holy Roble Kingdom**

* * *

Calca Bessarez and her entourage had arrived at Rimun with a small paladin guard after two days of travel. This was the third day since they had received the messenger from the port city concerning the island in the distance and the Crystal Tower that rose from it. Before they had even reached the fortified walls of the city, they could see the new land mass in the distance.

"It's true. A crystalline tower that the clouds touch . . ." Kelart was spellbound, her eyes wide in awe. The paladins and few clerics that attended them also stared in awe. Calca herself also stared at the tower in the distance, but in trepidation of what it could mean for her people. Remedios merely gawked at the sight.

A small band of riders left from the walls to meet them before they arrived. The center rider carried aloft the banner of the city of Rimun. At the head was the governor himself with his personal guard. As the groups met up, the governor bowed to Calca. He was one of the few nobility who didn't care if it was a woman in charge so long as the people were happy and carrying out their jobs and living peacefully.

Granted, he also secretly held her in some degree of contempt for her ineptitude, or lack of a spine on many matters concerning the state of the kingdom defense and strategy as a whole. Yes, the North and South disagreed on much, but her lack of follow through was actually hurting them, and badly. A house divided could never stand after all . . .

"Your Majesty. I did not think that you would grace us with your own presence over this matter. Please, if you would allow us to escort you in."

"You need not worry Governor Delacroix. I am come to Rimun to witness for myself this occurrence. I can see even from here that it is indeed as your messenger reported."

The groups merged into one another with Delacroix's guard taking the outer perimeter and the paladins lining the inner defense as he rode just to the left of the Twin Wings of the Queen and the Treasure of Roble herself. He knew of the sisters Custodio. Yet he was not truly impressed with them, especially White. Soldiers who had managed to return to their homes in Rimun had spoken tales of their accomplishments, yet one thing always rankled the tales. That Remedios Custodio was rather . . . stubborn was putting it lightly. Some of the more abrasive ones outright called the woman stupid, single minded, and willfully ignorant of the common knowledge that was required of everyday life.

Most of them had rather praised the Queen's compassion and kindness and Kelart's knowledge and magical prowess. But the younger sister always, "appeared to be scheming something". He could now see the reason for that belief, but he knew better than to judge the young lass for that. He could see her eyes and facial structure just alluded to a mischief maker, but his own features tended to lean that way as well. In that case, who was he to judge Kelart Custodio by such a thing?

He nodded in response to the Queen's words.

"Yes Holy Queen. But let us make haste for living quarters and supper. We may speak more freely about our concerns regarding this new location there."

No one objected to his words, they had ridden harder than normal to make good time, yet in the process, ignored lunch this day. Food that wasn't traveling rations and water out of a skin sounded wonderful.

People who lived in Rimun made way and bowed to the Queen as the convoy passed through the streets of the city. Militia men and women saluted if they were on duty. Children laughed and waved happily and Calca smiled warmly as she returned their waves. The governor's manor quickly came into view and they all entered into its gates. Servants assisted with horses and packs as militia and paladin dismounted. Delacroix motioned for the Queen to follow him and Calca nodded politely.

Remedios stepped in front of her and whispered quietly.

"I still don't know about this. How do we know that thing over there hasn't affected them?"

Delacroix actually did hear her, but kept silent. His butler glanced at him from the corner of his eye with a silent message of disbelief in his eye.

Calca noticed that exchange and half glared at her friend. Kelart shook her head slightly.

"Remedios." Calca's tone was level and steady, something she rarely did. Even as dense as she was, Remedios knew that tone and had enough grace to appear sheepish.

They entered into a dining chamber that was large enough to feed ten people with room to spare and an elegant wooden table with cushioned chairs. Offered the prime guest's seat, Delacroix waited until Calca had taken her seat before doing so himself. Remedios sat to her right and Kelart sat to her left. The butler brought chilled wine and soft bread with oil and herbs to dip it in.

"Queen Bessarez, I know that you have traveled far so I ask this of you. Are you feeling well enough after arriving that we may begin discussions? Or would you rather rest and begin anew in the morning? The events that have transpired since I sent my messenger have garnered some concern among my fellow merchants and citizens here in Rimun."

Calca shook her head before gracing him with a minute smile.

"I thank you for your consideration Governor Delacroix. I am fine despite the pushed travel. If you would like to begin informing us of what you know I believe that it would benefit us sooner rather than later."

Maid servants began to bring in dishes and utensils as supper began to be served. Delacroix nodded and began with little preamble.

"Three days ago a group of fishing vessels just off the coastline experienced a sudden and violent swell of waves. At first we feared that the merfolk at sea were performing some kind of ritual, but it seems that even they knew not what was happening. Several of the creatures were witnessed clamoring ashore if they were close to land with panicked faces."

He took a sip of his wine before continuing. Calca and the others had broken off small pieces of bread and began eating the food to sate their hunger for the main meal.

"So the the merfolk are not at fault?"

"We do not believe so. Their confusion and fright was just as obvious as ours from all accounts from those mermen and maids we questioned when they came ashore for a short period during the swells. It was during these swelling waves that the land broke the surface. It rose straight up, but there was little shaking of the earth. As all witnessing it tried to comprehend what was happening, the land suddenly was filled with vegetation! Trees full grown and greenery covered the landmass."

He frowned as he recalled the reports and witnesses that had filled the guards tations in concern, fear, or awe.

"Then, like a mirage, the tower you saw from outside our walls appeared. Reaching into the very firmament itself, and elegantly beauteous besides. Those who saw it appear state that they didn't realize a city had also appeared at its base until they got over looking to the sky as if a dragon had appeared. The city at the base of the Crystal Tower has walls that you can see from the piers with a spyglass, and yet the city spans upward from beyond those walls to the base of that tower. The walls are like alabaster white. Locals already call it "The White City" or "The Crystal City"."

As he continued to speak and pour out details to them, the rest of the food was served. Poached fish and roasted vegetables lined plates in generous portions. Calca silently wondered how many children this could have fed as she ate and pondered on the words she had just heard.

The sisters ate with a bit more fervor, though both managed to keep their manners well presented. Delacroix himself ate at a pace that more closely matched Calca's pace. A thick fish chowder also accompanied the meal and they partook of it as well. Delacroix did not speak as they ate in earnest. For a fairly lengthy amount of time, the occupants of the table merely ate quietly. The maids and butlers rounded the tables refilling wine glasses and taking finished plates.

Filled and sated, the group looked to begin speaking again.

"Your messenger mentioned magical beasts flying above the island?"

Calca asked as the final plate was cleared from the table. Delacroix nodded firmly. This was something that he had seen with his own eyes and not read through a report.

"There are Your Grace. At first it was just a group of them and we thought it to be a wild pack that spooked each other, but then guardsmen at the watch towers cried that they had riders. Ever since the first day, an organized group circles the island throughout the day. Some times it is pegasus riders, other times of the day it is gryphons. Every now and then both fly in concert!"

"Have they attacked anyone? Are they armed?" Remedios asked. This was a valid question, though Calca doubted that any violence had occurred yet. If it had, then the city would be under military lockdown from what little she understood of their strategies. She never did sit on any of them, preferring to let the sisters handle that.

Delacroix frowned. "No, there have not been. Anyone curious and brave enough to try and investigate via ship is warned by the flying patrols to turn back. Most do after they witness them up close. Those who ventured close enough to be given a warning all state that they are very well equipped. All the flying beasts are adorned in barding with the coat of arms of their city. A brilliant blue with a dragon roaring to the skies! The call their home Avalon and that they warn to turn back by order of their Queen of Knights. The riders themselves are lightly armored, but their quality is unlike any seen by our militia men."

Kelart and Calca frowned in thought. If this truly was the case, then these fliers were not just some tribe or militia, but a formal military! One that had aerial fighting ability! It was a frightening, no . . . terrifying prospect! Beastmen for all their numbers, could not fly en mass. They were also not a formal, and properly trained and funded military.

Not only that but magical beasts were gifted with special abilities and other traits. How would those powers be employed by creatures who recognized these riders as their masters? Kelart voiced her query next.

"Have any ignored the warning? Adventurers perhaps?"

The governor of Rimun frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. Calca remained placid as she sipped her wine in waiting. Remedios scoffed at the idea of adventurers trying anything.

"Humph! Why would sellswords try to do anything when they aren't paid for it by their guild?"

Delacroix glared at the woman seated at his table. His city, due to the distance from the Great Wall and thus it's relatively safe location, did not have many of the paladin order stationed within his walls. Instead, due to the confrontations with mermen and other sentient sea faring life, he and his fellow denizens relied on adventurers far more readily for assistance. They were stronger than militia men in general and had good report via the guild with the city at large. He did not appreciate Remedios disparaging good men and women who worked just as hard if not harder than the guards and merchants he governed.

"Lady Custodios! I am governor of this city and I will not hear slander against the Adventurer's Guild or its company. They do far more for this city than you give them credit for and due to the needs of the Great Wall against demi-humans from Abelion Hills your order has very little presence here. As such these 'sellswords' as you slander them as have honorably provided additional protection and services to this city and its people in place of the order! Holy Queen's presence or not, I will not have such criticisms without due cause. Am I understood?!"

Remedios was stunned silent as Calca mentally sighed. Kelart sighed and bowed to the man as she spoke.

"I fear that is my fault as to not informing the Commander of what the Guild has done for Rimun. The fault is my own for her lack of information."

This was a pony show that they had walked countless times before. Kelart was the scapegoat for the mistakes and blunders of her older sister. Delacroix glowered at both sisters before nodding slowly as if realizing something important.

"I see. Very well. I must apologize for cutting this short, but my past few days have been substantially more stressful than normal and my mental fatigue is catching up with me. The servants shall provide you with the rooms you will be staying in. If you need anything, please call for them. If they cannot help you with something, then they will contact me."

He got up from the table and bowed deeply to Calca before excusing himself. The three women sat at the table for a moment before Kelart looked to her sister in frustration. It wasn't even close to sundown yet.

"Elder sister . . . you have aggravated the lord of the city and made him close himself off to further discussion for the day. It's not even close to nightfall."

"Well it's not as if I'm not right. They're sellswords! They aren't putting their lives on the line at the Wall. We are!"

Calca put a delicate finger to her forehead in annoyance. How many times had she heard this conversation?

"Remedios, I can understand some of where you come from with this, but Governor Delacroix is right. This is his city to govern and his responsibility to lead. Adventurer's are more prevalent here than the Paladin Order. Please be respectful."

"Yes Calca."

The Queen wondered just how sincere that was. Kelart rolled her eyes openly at the whole thing. All she wanted was to learn about this new place.

* * *

 **Delacroix's Private Study**

* * *

"Ignorant, pampered, waste of a woman!" The man yelled as he stormed about the room. His wife stared at him as he fumed and paced. She had heard him storming to their study and braced herself, but she was surprised by the subject of his frustrations.

Alicia was a prominent merchant in Rimun and strict. Order and information were her weapons of choice and she could wield them gracefully like a dancer or a master painter. He was efficient and well learned, educated. Due to the conscription in their homeland, he was also decent with a blade, though he was far better with a quill. He was also level headed, so seeing him so angry was disturbing to say the least.

"Dear?" He calmed a bit at her voice. None of the servants were around. None of them were allowed in the study. It was one place they could be more relaxed and drop their professionalism a bit.

"Why is such an incompetent bearing the title of White?! When our men and women came home from their time at the Great Wall, I had hoped that the stories of Remedios Custodio and her sister had been exaggerated in the negative light, but it's only been reinforced since meeting them in person. Even the fishermen of the port are smarter than her!"

Alicia Delacroix swallowed. She too had heard stories concerning the Twin Wings of the Queen, but seeing her beloved act in such a manner about it was quite another matter. He was not one to pass out the insult of 'incompetent' lightly. Walking over to him, she rubbed his back in small circles.

"Do you think she will complicate matters concerning this Queendom on the island?"

"Of that I have no doubt. She is the worst person to have at any form of diplomatic meeting. You've seen the reports as I have. You've seen the riders in the sky in the distance as I have. They are obviously a vanguard to the main force that this Avalon can muster. Some of the sailors say that they've seen the merfolk race interacting peacefully with them! Dare we antagonize a group like that when the paladins are useless and have no presence?"

Both husband and wife looked out the window to the crystalline tower in the distance with a sense of dread. What was to happen to their relative peace?

* * *

 **Character Profile 7**

* * *

 **Artorias Faye Pendragon**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Queen of Knights, Queen of Avalon, Lover of Draconis

 **Residence:** Crystal Castle Pendragon, The Lair

 **Alignment:** Good (+350 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Dragon Blessed = 15 lvs.; Awoken Dragon Blessed = 10 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Noble (Genius) = 15 lvs.; Ruler (Genius) = 10 lvs.; Figher = 15 lvs.; Knight = 15 lvs.; Master of Arms = 10 lvs.; Duelist = 5 lvs.; Heroine = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [25 Racial Levels/75 Class Levels]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 85

 **MP:** 40

 **Physical Attack:** 80

 **Physical Defense:** 80

 **Dexterity:** 55

 **Magical Attack:** 30

 **Magical Defense:** 60

 **Resistances:** 70

 **Special:** 80

* * *

 **Review Section**

* * *

 **Well, not too much to say or point out to specific reviewers as most all of you who did had a similar opinion of the duel between Cerabrate and Draconis! Glad it pleased many of you even if the bastard didn't die yet.**

 **How do you guys and gals think this arrangement with Artorias and her Kights will pan out with Roble? I think it does not need saying, but I will for clarification.**

 **They are KNIGHTS, NOT Paladins. Big difference. Most of them have fought in real, total war. They know the moral gray area and the brutality of it all, the hypocrisy in killing to protect, but don't deny it or shy from it. Here in the New World, they see the opportunity to do good, but understand that it may take evil acts (Killing). It's a sin to them and their hands are stained red, which is why they will prefer talking to steel if they can help it. Woe be unto you if steel is the only option left or you force the fight.**


	8. Chapter 7 Meeting Preparations

**Overlord: The Exile**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the creation and property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official releases!**

 **Here's the next chapter for Artorias and friends and the Holy Roble Kingdom. I'm loving the art animation for the lizardman arc for Season II! We'll see how far Season II goes, though I don't expect it to get into the Men of the Kingdom Arc too far. We shall see . . . :P**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Meeting Preparations**

* * *

It was early in the morning and Artorias was sitting down in her office when Evalyn entered with breakfast. The cooks had insisted on a hot meal for her and as she was served, Gareth and Lancelot, along with Mordred had joined her. The group sat around enjoying fried eggs, salted and peppered pan fried potatoes with sautéed onions, country ham, and a small green salad with tomatoes. Fruit juice accompanied the meal.

It was part of the ration stipulation that had gone into effect. Everyone, themselves included, were allowed one more elaborate meal a day and the rest for the day were given out by the priests and priestesses with the [ _Create Food and Drink_ ] spell. It wasn't the [ _Magnificent Feast_ ] spell mainly due to the need of volume over extravagance. Not to mention that the latter spell was moderately high tiered for the people casting it. Only a handful of their NPCs could. Fortunately due to their location, the general bland meals were easily seasoned with salt and now, hilariously enough for them . . . sea salt.

Mordred grumbled about the lack of coffee, but the rest of his friends jibed him for his sour attitude over the bitter drink. Evalyn had tilted her head in confusion, but assumed it was an inside joke for them and just smiled at their camaraderie. Cavall wagged his tail excitedly as the nymph placed his own breakfast in front of him. A large shank of free meat from the pig used for meals today.

"Oh quit being such a sourpuss Mordred. Coffee is something we can worry about later."

The man grumbled even as he rolled his eyes at Lancelot's jab. Excuse him for not being a morning person. Artorias sighed as she took a drink from her cup. Remembering Gareth's report last evening before they had turned in for the day, she marked the small calender on her desk.

 _Day 4 since our transporting to this New World . . ._

"Gareth. You mentioned that your fliers spotted a group of armored and armed people riding into the city in the distance and that it appeared to have a banner?"

The blond nodded as she finished a piece of ham. Swallowing before she answered, the Lady Knight of the Round recalled what she and her pegasus squadron had seen.

"It seemed like some high nobility. Maybe even royalty considering the guardians riding around her. All of them were wearing some kind of platemail, but it was all white with hints of blue on the tabards. Of course, we're too far out to get a firm sense of power scale or magical enchantments. It was a step above the guardsmen we spy at their watchtowers though."

Mordred finished his plate and drink, letting Evalyn take them away before adding to the conversation.

"Perhaps these 'paladins' that the merfolk speak ill of?"

They all gave a mighty huff at the same time. It might have been comical if their faces weren't so serious. Lancelot spoke with grave tones.

"Paladins, essentially knights with religious fervor. Zealots? Fanatics? Christian crusades?"

"You mean the Knights Templar? Religious blinded rabble lead by the nose by power hungry men with ethnic prejudices so strong the modern world would have snuffed them out. Great, we're in a medieval world alright. Except the gods might actually get involved if things get too out of hand."

They all trembled slightly at that. The "gods" of YGGDRASIL were the World enemies and they'd faced down two. Not an easy time with all of them gathered, but with only a fourth of their number? Each knight shivered.

"Actually, that would mean that our relations may already be pretty low. Our leader is considered a demi-human after all."

Mordred spoke frankly and they all looked to Artorias, who swished her tail back and forth in concern. She was still getting used to it. It did not drape to the floor, but it was noticeable unless she wore her full cloak. Her horns replaced her ears and swept elegantly backward. The dark scales exotic against pale skin on her neck and down the center of her nose. If she went without shoes, her ankles and the tops of her feet were also covered in them. Her eyes glowed around the rims of her irises and her eyes held power that one could feel. There would be few ways to hide her nature when meetings were held.

"Never mind our leader, what about our people? We have quite a spread of races among them. Many are with families as well."

It was true. Avalon held a number of other races. Fey of many kinds. Elves and humans. Dog like archons and even a handful of dwarves. There was even three or four fiendish races who they had wrote in as redeemed, turning their alignments and granted them positive karma ratings. That had been Merlin's doing . . . the crazy pervert . . . Half Incubus race indeed . . .

"I sense an ideology clash in the near future. How do we want to handle damage control?" Lancelot asked.

Artorias picked up a report she had written down from a [ _Message_ ] she had received.

"Well, Draconis sent me this late last night." Gareth smiled cheekily at her.

"A love letter?"

The Queen of Avalon blushed furiously before glaring at her friend. Evalyn blushed as well. The men in the room shook their heads.

"No Beaumains, an actual report." Artorias huffed in annoyance at getting wrapped up in Gareth's antics yet again. It was a bit of a tradition by this point as they'd tease each other about their love life. "That being said, he's already been in a few fights with what the people where he is at call 'beastmen'."

Before questions could be asked, she forged ahead.

"A village was being raided by hetermorphics with the intention of using the human populous as food. Man, woman, child, it doesn't matter to them. Maneaters. He's fairly sure that there are a few rare cases of them not eating humans exist, but that is extremely rare. The humans there are just weak, flat out. His estimates were anywhere between a rank one commoner to maybe a rank five expert. Tier VI magic reduced the beastmen he faced to smoked sacks of meat in a single cast."

Not too many of their number were casters, but even they knew the magic scaling back in YGGDRASIL. If the general populous was that weak against these heteromorphs that died so easily against spells that didn't really see the light of day at a level 100 endgame player vs player conflict or even player vs environment dungeons . . . what did that mean for them?

"Does this mean we're like fantasy world T-500's?" Mordred wondered.

"Huh? T-whats?" Lancelot questioned his comrade.

"Eh? Oh, sorry, old movie reference. Basically we outclass the majority of everything out there by leagues I imagine."

The rest of the group frowned. This was shaping up to be a real mess.

"Alright then . . . if that is truly the case, how much strength do we display? I for one," Mordred raised his hand as he empathetically looked around the group, "do not want to be worshiped as a god. Awkward . . ."

Bobbing heads indicated their agreement with the sentiment. Things just got weird whenever that kind of thing went down. None of them were too thrilled with the prospect. Lancelot spoke up.

"Concerning that, what of the idea that others of YGGDRASIL may have been transported here other than us, and Draconis?"

Artorias winced slightly. He had a point. In fact, her husband's report had also contained a bit of information that she was rather concerned over. In face of the friendship and trust she had with those in the room, she decided it best to be upfront now rather than get caught in unneeded drama later.

"Lancelot is right, and it's true actually." When the others looked to her in confusion, she bit the bullet. "Draconis retrieved Esdeath from Ainz Ooal Gown after we all got sent to this world. The Great Underground Tomb of Nazarick and its denizens are all here, as is Momonga."

"Whaaaa . . . ?"

Artorias cringed at the faces directed toward her. Evalyn winced and excused herself for a bit. She would not speak of that knowledge to anyone, but she knew things were tense now. It was time to leave the room. This was obviously an internal issue . . .

* * *

 **Great Tomb of Nazarick**

* * *

"AAACHOOOOOOOO!" One of the deadliest and harshest dungeon raid bases ever in the history of YGGDRASIL shook all over as every being inside sneezed as a single entity.

None of the maids or butlers were very happy with that as every picture frame or wall hanging piece went crooked.

* * *

 **Carne Village**

* * *

Ainz Ooal Gown actually felt a shiver go up his spine as he spoke with the village chief to gain information about the world. It was like whenever Touch Me would merely stare at him, waiting for him to help someone. It was unnerving.

 _Someone's talking about me . . . could it be Draconis and his friends? Oh . . . OH . . . uh-oh . . . ! What was I asking the village elder again? Money changing? CRAP!_

* * *

 **Rimun Port City Docks**

* * *

Calca was accompanying Governor Delacroix to the docks and stood upon one of the watchtowers with a spyglass in hand. Looking out over the ocean waters that were relatively calm now, she could see the alabaster white walls that were spoken of late last night. Kelart was to her left, but at the insistence of the governor, Remedios was left down at the base of the tower. The woman had been incensed at the gesture, but Calca figured that she may as well concede this in order to appease Delacroix.

She didn't need another noble turning on her. Calca sighed to herself. Sure enough, the city beyond those pure white walls rose above them and the tower beyond that was gleaming in the sunlight. Kelart gasped and pointed in a direction above the city they spied on. Looking in the direction, the Treasure of Roble drew in a subtle breath.

Pegasi with barding and armored and armed riders flew through the skies above the city. There were eight total when she counted. Two groups of four with one slightly lower and in front of the second. They flew in an organized formation shaped like a wedge. It was true, they were too organized, too coordinated to be some random militia. This was a polished and trained military unit.

Glancing over the rest of the view before her, she saw water born fortifications being erected on the surface of the water itself! What kind of magic was being used here? She could not clearly make out individuals, but she was certain a few of them were coming out of the seas from below. So they were already working with the merfolk in the area.

"Well, that already tells me much about this new city."

"I'm sorry Your Grace, what do you see?" Delacroix raised a curious brow to her.

"This new city upon the waters has no qualms about working and even cooperating with demi humans. The merfolk let them create bastions on the surface of the waters. I cannot fully make them out even with the spyglass, but people are breeching the surface of the water and working with those silhouettes I can make out on the walls of those floating structures. Who else would it be but the merfolk."

Her logic was sound. He personally had nothing against the merfolk. Many of those in the city who did were either of the Paladin Order and negatively tempered by their time fighting demi-humans from Abelion Hills or fishermen who couldn't catch decent hauls due to wandering into their territorial waters. In either case, both parties were a bit a fault. It did not help that the previous governor of Rimun had been a retired Paladin. He had been governor for six years now and even now he struggled to fix relations between them.

 _Perhaps this will be the opportunity needed to make some real progress in that regard._

The real question was how objective was this city beyond the waters?

Walking back down from the top of the watch post, Calca thought about a few paths to take regarding communicating with this city in the distance. Kelart also began thinking of ways to open a dialogue with the white city. She had been curious about the place when the very first report arrived several days ago, but seeing it now was too good to be true. Even if they were more open to demi-humans, the idea of the possible magic beyond those walls enticed her like savory aromas to a starving man.

Glancing at each other, they both nodded. It was time to meet with the Adventurer's Guild with a new proposal.

* * *

 **Adventurer's Guild**

* * *

Alkaid of the Adventurer's Guild of Rimun sighed as she sat in her office overlooking the western oceans. That island with its brilliant azure tower and alabaster city was really tempting to investigate, but the fliers that had been seen overhead made it a no go. She had gained the position as the head of this branch of the Adventurer's Guild in the northern Roble Kingdom due in large part to the need for protectors on the western coasts of the kingdom. As much as she hated her current situation, it beat having to knock heads with some of the paladin types.

She was not a native citizen of Roble. In truth she hailed from the Southern provinces. Her skill with another weapon of note from the South that wasn't a katana was feared and viewed with quite a large amount of both skepticism and open loathing for its nature. She was used to it by this point.

A large chunk of what landed her in her current position was the fact that she was not native to the area and therefore not subject to certain prejudices that others might succumb to. While that was true, it was also difficult at times to get others respect and trust. Her old team had agreed to disperse for a time. She had found herself more less settling in here in Rimun.

"Maybe I need to get out for a bit . . . eh? What's the ruckus?"

A series of angry exchanges and a rather chilling atmosphere from the lobby and tavern area of the common room made her walk over to the overlooking railing from her office. When she got a glimpse of what was going on, eye eyebrows lifted in surprise.

 _Well now . . . seems this whole incident is worthy of royal attention eh? Is that White? What's that meathead gotten into . . . and with who?_

Alkaid's eyes followed Remedios's glare to its target and she found herself overcome with the need to grab a strong drink. The man in banded mail armor and two handed battle axe was the leader of an orichalcum class team known as Sea Hunters. A group of rough necks that took water going jobs here in the city. They did there job's decently well, but to her . . .

"Eh, wazzat? I dares ya tah say that again you bob cut sow!" The man's voice was like nails on a chalkboard and so slurred even without alcohol that you almost needed an interpretor to get what he was saying.

Alkaid groaned. She did not need this neanderthal provoking the meathead paladin commander. Though the fight that resulted would be interesting, the repairs to the building and town would not. She did owe Delacroix that much. Walking over to one of the walls in her office, she reached for what she needed to stop their bickering.

"The Four take me . . ."

Remedios glared with clenched fists as she stood between Calca and Kelart. Behind them, Delacroix held his face in his hand in frustration. Granted, she was actually pretty vindicated in this instance due to the man's attitude and derisive comment that they had heard, but couldn't she just take the high road and _not_ confront one of the stronger members of the guild before a crucial meeting?

Then again, insulting and practically molesting the Queen was something even he had struggled not to respond to.

"You pig! You . . . !"

Remedios didn't get any further in her rant when a spear landed blade tip into the floor between them. The blade sank deep into the floor and all the adventurers in the tavern, went deathly quiet. Eyes turned toward the overlooking railing to see a wild haired red head with far southern styled clothes in black and gold. Her neck and part of her collar bone was exposed, yet not enough to be something salacious. She was surprisingly petite, either that or the railing was tall. Her skin was sun kissed tan, but not too dark.

Amber eyes glared at the man with the axe and only him. Calca and the sisters stared curiously at this woman. Was she the guild leader? Someone important if not that? Remedios's instinct kicked and she realized that this woman was strong. Really strong. Why was someone like that here and not fighting the demi-humans?

"Brenden! Get your sea salt encrusted butt out of the Queen's way or so help me I will make you go back to sucking your mother's teat!"

The pressure in the room increased at the man, Brenden, cowed before nodded and stepping out of the way entirely and returning to his table. The rest of his team looked to Alkaid apologetically.

"You fellas cause another incident this week. WEEK! And you'll get no jobs in this area for a month! You hear me?!"

"YES MA'AM!" They all responded immediately. No one pissed off the Guild Leader Alkaid.

Delacroix sighed in relief. He was grateful that Alkaid was here today. Things could have gotten extremely out of hand. She kept the more unruly elements of the guild in line and was an excellent leader both on and off the field, though not by her own choice. He would have to send her an order of that far South beverage she loved so much: Sake.

"Queen Calca Bessarez. I welcome you to the Adventurer's Guild of Rimun. Please show Her Majesty up to my office."

The receptionist nodded and bowed to Alkaid in a manner that the queen and sisters had never seen before. The young brunette woman approached them from behind the counter and curtsied before motioning to a staircase behind the reception counter. They nodded and followed the woman up to the office of the guild leader.

The office had no door, instead it was only partitioned off with a curtain of very fine silk that had been dyed a velvety purple. The cost for such a thing made Kelart stumble as they approached. How influential was this woman who they were meeting? She didn't think that adventurer's made quite _that_ much to be able to afford such a luxury only to use it as a door curtain!

The receptionist held the curtain aside as they walked through. Delacroix thanked her softly as he passed through, earning him a nod of thanks before she left back down the stairs.

Inside the office the décor was unlike anything they had seen. Certain wood moldings were lacquered in greens and reds. The floor went from polished hardwood to some kind of woven reeds! The woman standing to the side of her desk was standing on it barefoot! What looked to be sandals of some kind were set off to the side on the hardwood floor portion of her office. A pair of glass chimes clinked and jingled in the sea breeze from a very open bay window.

Decorations lined the wall, but didn't clutter it. Though the farmer's tool with a weight at the end of it, attached to a long chain was out of place. Had it been a gift of some kind? It was too elaborate and elegantly crafted to be a simple farmer's tool. It was mounted along with a angled spear that matched the one that she had thrown into the lobby. The mountings were deprived of their resident. A round hoplon shield and shortsword also hung on the wall.

There was no armor in the room at all, though a very elaborate robe was painstakingly displayed on its vertical mounting. Contrasting her black and gold outfit, it held bright and vibrant colors and cloud like patterns. It was a thing of beauty . . . surely she didn't wear it?

Her desk was simple and held a pyramid stack of scrolls. However, there was no ink well or quill to go with them, instead a brush of some manner and a tray with the ink held within its rim. The differences in mannerism and décor were enough to give everyone entering but Delacroix himself pause.

The man stopped short of the reeded floor and bowed in the same manner as the receptionist did to this woman.

"Guild Master Alkaid, I apologize for the sudden and loud intrusion." She returned the bow, but equal in depth. Neither of them rose from it. It was jarring. What kind of greeting ritual was this?

"Governor Delacroix. A pleasure to receive you and the Queen of all people today. You need not apologize for the incident, it was Brenden's fault and he shall be penalized on his next job for it."

They both rose at the same time even though no eye contact had been made. It was eerie. Alkaid turned to Calca bowed in a manner more like their kingdom's nobility, with the elegance to back it up. Calca found it hard to to bow back with the charisma this woman exuded. Her personality had shifted a full about face! Who was she getting ready to deal with? Were all adventurer's this way?

"Queen Bessarez I apologize for Brenden of Sea Hunters. As an Orichalcum Class team leader he should know better, but his group has always been more brawn than brain."

She gave Remedios half a glare. "Though rising to his provocations does no one any good."

Her half lidded glare then turned to Kelart. "And the order of paladins and the church has not been too kind to adventurer reputations either. Mayhap we brush this aside in favor of the greater picture here?"

Her gaze traveled out the window to the crystal tower in the distance.

Calca nodded and motioned to keep silent. It was obvious to her that this was a test. She had seen things like this too much from the nobility and the other members of the Royal Family. Only her younger brother had her trust out of the members of the royalty. This woman truly was formidable. She lead adventurer teams and was obviously no stranger to the political games. Who was this woman?

Tests like this were to see whether or not you were worth even bothering with. Even though she had apologized for Brenden's confrontation, Remedios hadn't helped matters either. Against high tier political opponents, she was regretting not having taken a more personal investment in having someone close by who wasn't either sister to advise and attend meetings like this with her.

On the other hand, she _had_ rather ostracized herself from such meetings and machinations in favor of being the morale for the people. Kelart and Remedios had been attending those meetings and informing her . . . rather well in truth, but she herself rarely attended. This woman was at a steep advantage now.

 _At least Governor Delacroix is here._

"Guild Master Alkaid. It is a pleasure to meet you. I believe that keeping the bigger picture - as you say - in sight is of great import."

"Hm . . . indeed it is Your Majesty." Alkaid picked up a piece of parchment from her desk and walked toward her. She held it out for her to take and wore a thoughtful frown. "This is the latest report that I have from one of the teams here in Rimun."

Accepting the report, Calca began to read through it as Alkaid spoke on.

"It outlines the basics of what happens when someone approaches. Such discipline and order in their soldiers speaks of rigorous training and a certain level of respect of their superiors for them to maintain their orders."

The parchment did indeed outline what happened when someone came too close. A voice would be heard in your heads to turn back and failure to do so would be met with being forced to turn back. Reading onward, her thoughts of military force being used to make them turn away were shot down when it went on. A spell of some kind . . . at least that was what the magic casters assumed it was . . . would cloud your perceptions and you would find yourself back at Rimun just shy of the ports so you did not crash your vessel. So far no one had pierced this fog in one's perceptions to get beyond a certain point.

"So no one has gone beyond the point where this haze overcomes them?"

"Not to my knowledge."

Calca handed the report to Kelart, who read over it swiftly. Remedios read over her sister's shoulder.

"Perhaps this is presumptuous of me, but could it be that this is an illusion?"

Calca was met by Alkaid shaking her head negatively.

"Not likely Your Majesty. I have seen magic casters and worked with many as well. The magical power needed to perform such a grand illusion is beyond anyone in the kingdom or without. I doubt even Fluder Paradyne could perform such a feat."

Kelart finished reading the report and nodded in agreement with Alkaid.

"I agree with her Calca. I do not believe this to be an illusion. But a voice in their head that never was the same person? Telepathy? And from their soldiers! It's unheard of! It eliminates the need for a runner in favor for instant messages and no delays in information sending!"

Remedios grit her teeth at that information. Such a thing was surely a fearsome weapon in the hands of fighting men and women. Runners took time and if killed, lost the message completely. She understood that quite well. Her sister had made a frightening point. Surely they all could not do such a thing?

"What is it you wish to do Queen Bessarez?"

The question was a bit sudden, though not wholly unexpected. Alkaid stood before them with expectant look despite being shorter than all of them. She was only barely at five feet tall and the woman was barefoot.

"I would like to enlist the aide of the Adventurer's Guild here in Rimun in making contact with this city that stands beneath the crystal tower."

Alkaid sighed and began walking toward the window that granted her a direct view of the island and tower beyond. "I thought that might be the case. Even though I am the Guild Leader for Rimun, I cannot act in that capacity."

Delacroix wore an informed frown and nodded slightly. He did not voice this concern to Calca and the sisters due to a few factors.

Firstly: The rules of the Adventurer's Guild made a lot of sense as a form of third party armed force. The Guild would not take part in political issues due to their inter-human natures in general. The Guild existed to protect people from external threats. Internal affairs in politics was not their place. It made interacting with Adventurer's from other nations impossible if you were swayed by the political sphere.

Secondly: The Holy Roble Kingdom's paladin order and military was actually stronger than the Guilds in the kingdom overall. This fact for their kingdom served to reinforce the unofficial rule of staying out of political gambits.

Finally: Due to the second reason, the tensions between Adventurers and Paladins was at a bit of a low point to put it lightly. Those teams that were strong – which were few in number throughout the kingdom – did not hold themselves to the same oath of fealty and thus, had more freedoms. They also generally made more income due to their dangerous occupations. It also meant that a surprising number of them had more experience fighting non-humans and monsters than the average paladin.

This created a large swing of prejudices between the two factions. Most paladins and soldiers looked down on adventurers as sell swords, though that was far from true. Many adventurers viewed paladins of the order as incompetent, greenhorns with fancy duds and shiny swords that never got used just sitting on a huge wall most of their lives . . . which was . . . quite true. Paladins and other soldiers waited for the trouble to come to them, and hope to fend them off. Adventurers actively sought it out with their jobs and quests and more often than not, did not just fend them off, but were victorious.

Due to the lack of paladin presence in Rimun due to their location far, far away from the Great Wall, the Adventurer's Guild and its patrons viewed them in a much better light than the rest of their nation did. Here, at the port city, it felt more like a better reinforced city that one could find in Re-Estize in terms of the Adventurer's Guild and its inhabitants. His wife and Delacroix himself were extremely grateful for the protection and services they had done for the city's people. He was not one snub those that helped their fellows and not one to look down on hard work; especially if you risked your neck doing so.

Delacroix dared gamble that Alkaid had seen more combat and dangerous scenarios and lived to learn from it all than Remedios, Kelart, or Calca combined would ever subject themselves to in their whole lives. That and the fact that Alkaid was only 26, barely older than Calca Bessarez herself.

If Calca and the others knew Alkaid's moniker, they would have approached this differently. However he seriously doubted that any of them knew her trade name.

Alkaid was the only Adamantite Ranked adventurer in Roble's whole kingdom. A soloist who occasionally worked with other teams as added insurance for their small population's survival. Due to her signature weapon of the South and her fearsome fighting style that no one could replicate, she had earned her title.

Demon Empress: Alkaid.

Kelart nodded as she understood Alkaid's refusal. She knew the poor relation that the order had with the adventurers of the kingdom and vice versa. Though she did not hold against them personally, she was thinking of ways that the red haired woman before her could take advantage of any mistakes and missed opportunities Calca would make in interacting with whoever the people of this new city were. Alkaid was being very shrewd. She could respect that aspect.

Remedios fumed at her.

"And why not? Don't tell me you're afraid of arranging a meeting?"

Alkaid didn't back down from the taunt, nor did she rise to meet it. The woman merely walked to the window and brought out a long pipe and lit the herbs and leaf inside before inhaling. Holding it for a moment, she slowly breathed it out. Tipping it over and knocking it on the railing, a bit of the ash fell from the opening at the end.

"We are done here. Delacroix, I will speak with you latter on another matter. See to the Queen's endeavors. I cannot and will not move, nor will I interfere in her interactions with this new city before us. I wish you good fortune. May the Four guide you."

She waved to dismiss them and not once did she turn back to look at them. Delacroix assumed this would happen. He knew that as the Guild Leader, she had to think more objectively, and with the unofficial rule about politics and internal affairs of mankind, her hands were more tied than one would be led to believe.

"I see. Thank you for your time today Guild Master Alkaid. Let us be off. This door is shut to us."

Calca Bessarez spoke softly, a slight hitch in her voice betrayed her disappointment in the result of this meeting. Delacroix bowed to Alkaid and turned to escort them out of the office. As Kelart and Calca stepped through the door Delacroix turned to tell Remedios to come along when the bob haired woman stepped toward Alkaid.

"You will regret this later."

Alkaid didn't grace her with an answer, but puffed deeply on her pipe as she stared out at the island in the distance.

"Remedios. Hurry up, you are keeping the Queen waiting!" Delacroix spoke sharply. The commander of the paladin order cursed mildly and turned to go. As she passed through, he shook his head in annoyed disappointment before bowing to Alkaid. She nodded to him quietly and shooed him away with a sympathetic grin. He sighed in relief. At least his own relations with the guild were safe. He just needed to keep his wits and patience.

As they left, Alkaid huffed and looked back out at the crystal tower in the distance. She recalled tales that she had been told by her mother, and her mother's mother, and so on for several generations before her.

" _Our progenitor, the honorable and mighty_ Shin Yoshitsune Kai-sama _once traveled to an alabaster city with a crystalline tower that reached to the heavens. There he met and exchanged words with the twelve strongest warriors there. They were lead by a_ Queen of Knights _and through word and deed was an friendship and alliance crafted. Our great ancestor and his fellow warriors and magi were allies with the people of the crystal tower. On his deathbed, he bade us pass down this tale and send out travelers into the world that we may find our ancient allies should they appear and offer to renew our alliance. Always remember this little one. They are steadfast allies."_

"It's just like the tales Okasan and Obasan told. I thought them fancy bedtime stories." She sighed and looked to the heavens. Her mother and grandmother were long gone. "I owe you both and our ancestors an apology."

This was one piece of her background she kept hidden. No one up here in the North of the continent needed to know that she was a godkin. Yet here she was, seeing before her own eyes the very sight their founder had so many centuries ago. She, Alkaid Ushiwakamaru Kai would be the one to reforge that old alliance and friendship to the descendants of her ancestor's friends. It would be an honor like no other to her family.

Walked to her desk, she sat and took the best quality parchment out to write home to her sister and brother about her find. It would take weeks to get there, but if she didn't send it tomorrow at the latest, she knew that she would lose sleep over it. Dipping her brush into the fresh ink tray, she began her calligraphy. Her voice was a whisper as she talked herself through her writing to reinforce and focus her mind on the task.

"Dearest Sister and honored Brother. It has appeared before me! The Crystal Tower and Alabaster City of our great ancestor . . ."

* * *

 **Castle Pendragon**

* * *

Artorias and Lancelot walked through the halls of the castle toward the Royal Armory. Only Gareth and Mordred had re-donned their armor over the past few days, so they had to go and sort through their equipment as well. As they approached, the hall lined with guards saluted at attention before resuming their more relaxed, yet still alert postures.

"Thank you for your continued service. Be sure to rest well when your shift ends." Her words were met with grateful smiles and hearty acknowledgements. To be thanked by the Queen herself! An honor indeed!

They passed through the doors and were flooded with the fruits of their labors. Mountains of gold, silver, platinum, and gemstones galore were situated in chests bursting at the seams. Racks of armors segregated by gender and then character before further separated into Tiers. Mounts with weapons of all kinds: swords, great swords, daggers, short swords, spears of all variants, halberds, shields of every type, bows and arrows of magical craftsmanship, crossbows, staves, even ones from the orient. Katana, naginata, yari, tetsubo, makikanshisha, hachimaki, the list went on and on. Even futuristic weapons from the Fall of Valkyria patch were here.

Other magical artifacts and treasures existed in this massive, multi-chambered armory. A giant slumbering form cracked an eye to look at them. The orb was massive, 7 feet in diameter as it gazed at them unblinking. Beautiful honey amber with vertical pupils rimmed in bright crimson encased a second iris and pupil when you looked closely enough.

A heavy sighed met their ears as a colossal body rose from the center of the chamber as it uncoiled from its resting place. Standing fully, a magnificent and beautiful dragon looked down at them. Wings unfurled and stretched to their maximum length, 125 meters from wingtip to wingtip. It's wings folded back in as it took a seat before them like a feline would. It's tail curled around its feet and twitched at its very tip.

"Greetings Queen Artorias." A luxurious feminine voice reverberated through the chambers. "Last you and Lancelot were here, it was to 'call a closure to the tale' as you had put it."

Both Queen and Knight were taken back. She remembered their words from the day of the server close? Well, she was gifted to them by the devs back then as congratulations for completing the ludicrous Dragonsong War series of quests with Draconis over a year ago. Seemed like something they would do: grant her a background with massive awareness and power.

 _Still! Did they really like our Role Play during combat and Draconis's sacrifice that time to save us_ that _much? I mean, if she wanted to, she could destroy us all pretty much on a whim._

This magnificent dragon before them was one of the First Brood. Ratotosker. A daughter of Midgardsomer, the First Sire of Dragons. She was the a Grand Raid Boss classification of monster, requiring two Legions – 36 Man Parties – to defeat with fierce fighting and massive losses. She was level 100, game breaking and OP as hell. They had no control over her and her friendship was written into their guild by the devs themselves. It was like a ticking time bomb they never asked for.

Draconis had flipped his lid when he had found out after he resurrected after the battle and returned to Avalon later on. Apparently, his new rare, and secret class even to them allowed him to find favor in the First Sire's children somehow. She didn't know and didn't ask. But they all had agreed on one thing . . . trolling ass devs . . .

No one in Avalon outside of the Knights of the Round, Artorias, and Draconis knew of her making a new home in their Armory/Treasure Chambers. Ratotosker was reclusive, but genial. Taking that to mean weak would be your death in dragonbreath.

"Indeed, we did state such a thing, however, the situation has changed drastically. We have been transported to a new world."

Even the daughter of Midgardsomer frowned as she sniffed the air and flicked a forked tongue out to taste it. There were magical vents that circulated air from the outside. The dragon's head tilted to the side in curiosity.

"Salty . . . relatively dry . . . an ocean? Avalon was not close to such a body of water in YGGDRASIL. Hmm . . . intriguing. I understand your need to reacquire your things. Should you need me, I am here. What of your partner Queen Artorias?"

"Draconis is here as well, but in another part of the continent that sit just off the coast of. A place he called, the Dragon Kingdom. Though from the sounds of it, it is not strong and struggling greatly."

The dragon slowly laid back down, but kept her keen eyes on the two before her. She recognized Draconis for his efforts and sacrifice during and at the end of the Dragonsong War. It was much to the efforts of this guild and their friend that had become enemies of YGGDRASIL's human player base by fighting on the _dragons_ ' side of the war and had ended the war and settle peace with the King and Archbishop of the Theocracy that declared a false war upon their kind.

It had been unfortunate that her brother Nidhogg had to be killed in his madness and ruthless killing by an alliance of Avalon, Draconis, and several others, but she did not hold it against them. Bahamut, her eldest brother had tested him and he had passed! Of all things to behold at the time, that had been a crowning accomplishment. Due to the bonds they had shared and the resolution of the war, she had felt compelled to lend them permanent aide and friendship. It also helped that both the Queen and Draconis held dragon blood in their veins.

"I have little doubt that your partner will do his utmost to help them. Especially if any of dragon blood is present and in need. What of your situation Queen Artorias?"

Lancelot and Artorias looked at each other and shrugged. Better to let her know now than have her suddenly just appear and scare the souls out of whoever saw her. Lancelot stared off and Artorias interjected on other points as they took some time enlightening the daughter of the First Sire about the situation they all were wrapped up in.

* * *

 **Castle Pendragon Courtyard**

* * *

Mordred and Gareth were sharing lunch together while catching a breather from their work for the day. One of the maids of the castle insisted on waiting on them and after much pestering on her part, she was allowed to attend them. After a bland breakfast of oatmeal with a hint of herbs and edible seaweed provided from the merfolk, lunch was seared fish and breads with something odd akin to an ocean carrot from this world. It was interesting and tasted like a pickled radish.

Mulled wine went with the meal and the two knights pondered about the situation and the future.

"So what do you think will happen? Talks and agreements, or talks, disagreements and war?"

"Gods I hope not war. Better is the sword never used than one that continuously spills blood."

Mordred hummed his agreement with Gareth. Though he wasn't quite so optimistic. He was no diplomat, but even he could see that this would not be a lightly treated meeting . . . whenever it happened in any case. He was waiting for the pin to drop.

Gareth took another mouthful of sea carrot and fish before answering after a bit of chewing and swallowing.

"You know Mordred, we should all probably spar again soon to make sure we haven't gotten rusty. Nasty thing, learning all of your abilities fresh."

She was right. Despite some solo training here and there done by all of them, none of them had sparred with each other to get a gauge of pain, healing, HP levels, and such since their transferral to this world. It was important to do just in case they ran into other players who could actually harm them.

"Point taken Gareth. Tomorrow morning, you and me?"

"Gladly."

The two shook on it. The maid took mental note of this agreement between Knights of the Round and couldn't wait to spread the news. It was so rare to see them duel each other! It would be a rare spectacle to witness.

* * *

 **Castle Pendragon Armory**

* * *

"Hmm . . . I see. This is indeed quite the conundrum." Ratotosker nodded her massive head up and down as she acknowledged the situation for what it was. "I understand your concerns and will keep myself here unless I deem it necessary to venture forth. Be wary, but bold Queen Artorias."

Artorias bowed in thanks and gratitude, as did Lancelot. They were truly fortunate that the dragon understood their situation and had a mind for discretion over grandiose displays. OF course, that didn't mean that if it remotely warranted it, she wouldn't put on a grand show. She was a dragon in the end.

They had both decided to go with their second strongest sets of equipment. All Legendary Tier with smatterings of God Tier. Mainly their weapons were of God Tier. Given the report that Draconis had sent them, they had a feeling that their strongest sets were massive overkill here.

Lancelot wore full plate armor with a half shoulder cape of black and silver. The armor itself was deep violet and silver resembling dragon scales and burnished obsidian. Lancelot used no shield, but a finely ornate yet functional hand-half sword of silver and dull gray. A cold iron weapon that could affect fey if needed. Unsheathed, it held the ice element and smoked like dry ice.

Artorias wore a combination of plate armor and chainmail of elegant design with a long coat underneath the plate and over the chailmain and clothing underneath. The tails draped down to her mid calf. Blues, golds, and rubies highlighted the fringes of the coat tails and the armor sections were a gleaming silver. She sat her sword in its sheath beside its more powerful sibling. Caliburn and Excalibur, the Legendary and God Tier weapons respectively. The Guild Weapon was something else entirely, and something that was so well hidden, even they sometimes forgot it was with them.

Bidding the dragon a good day, they left the armory. They would be ready to face the impending meetings that were sure to happen with this new group that their scouts had spotted entering the port city one the coast.

"Si vis pacem, para bellum."

Artorias muttered quietly as they walked down the halls again. Lancelot nodded in silent agreement. They would begin with talks but ready for war. They would not draw first blood, let the enemy do that and regret doing so later. They hoped it would not come to that. Yet they were not foolish enough to pin all their hopes on just that notion. The war they had fought once already and the PK'ers of the game had taught them that quite clearly.

Preparations were more or less complete or close to it. Now it was a matter of how and who to open talks with.

If you want peace, prepare for war.

* * *

 **Character Profile 8**

* * *

 **Alkaid Ushiwakamaru Kai**

 **Position:** Guild Leader of Rimun Branch of Holy Roble Kingdom, Demon Empress Alkaid

 **Race:** Human . . . ?

 **Residence:** Far Southern nation [Homeland], Rimun of the Holy Roble Kingdom

 **Racial Levels:**?

 **Class Levels:** Rogue = ?; Ninja = ?; Shadow = ?; etc.

The only adamantite adventurer in the Holy Roble Kingdom due to the prevalent presence of the paladin order and conscription of the citizens be they man or woman. She hails from the Far South and has an older brother and younger sister. Her big secret is that she is a Godkin, descended from Shin Yoshitsune Kai, an old ally of Avalon. She believed the tales of Avalon and its Knights and their Queen to be just a folktale, but now believes otherwise. Very honorable, but no-nonsense, she is a fierce fighter yet her upbringing gives her enough presence of mind to be conscious of the bigger picture, yet flexible in the day to day. She leads the Adventurer's Guild of Rimun albeit reluctantly. Is keenly aware of the existence of Zesshi Zetsumei and can match her in fighting ability, though no one knows that yet . . . She is not well known as the kingdom downplays adventurers quite hard. If she was to make herself more known, she could easily beat Gazef and Gagaran. Her siblings are stronger than her in outright combat, but she beats them in other areas.

* * *

 **Review Responses**

* * *

 **Goodness, a lot of you this time around XD. Not that I mind. It's what keeps me going!**

 **RyuujiVantek:** Neia will make her appearance at some point in the future though it may be a bit far off. Patience please? I personally like Neia's character a lot. No promises on changing vol. 12's canon in regards to Demiurge. Though things will be different to a degree, just not the way you may expect it. I'm glad you love Artorias and her friends perspectives. Draconis kinda has it alone for a while so when they meet up again, get ready for it!

 **UndeadLord22:** Heh heh . . .

 **MadDan90:** Yeah . . . you and A LOT of others tended to predict either the Slane Theocracy or Baharuth Empire. They are pretty much the most fleshed out locations in the New World officially, but Roble just seemed appropriate . . . that and not very fleshed out _by comparison_. Just from Vol. 12, I could not help but cringe at the ineptitude displayed. Even if Maruyama is playing off of DnD and other TRPGs, I've played effective AND smart paladins and this just shames the class to death via embarrassment. :(

 **PervySageChuck:** I know right?

 **Solarblaster:** Sounds like someone plays DnD as well . . . yeaaaah . . . the Lawful Stupid Paladin trope. Sad thing is, there are WAY too many people like this in our own world. Thing is, from the Light Novels, it is clearly stated that she truly is stupid. A meathead who took to studying, and gave up because it was too hard . . . I mean, really?

She focused on nothing but training and fighting. Uses her sister as a scapegoat when they "don't have enough information" and goes on pure emotion, which is stupid in the extreme. There has to be a balance for people of both emotions AND logic. She is the example of pompous arrogance combined with self righteous delusions and fairy tale embodiment in a world that couldn't give a crap.

It only gets barely portrayed in full in Vol. 12, but the theories that its a doppleganger in her place is rather out there in my opinion. I can see why the Bloody Emperor of Baharuth sees them as incompetent and hates them. I personally don't blame the guy at all.

 **AKXIV:** Perhaps . . . she'll definitely get her comeuppance, but not quite yet. Let it stew a bit. Good stew simmers for a long time . . . :D

 **Ilireanwri:** I am glad you are enjoying the story thus far! Chronos will have his opinions come up when the Slane Theocracy rears its head eventually. My issue with Momonga is that he HAS ABSOLUTE BLIND LOYALTY. He could tell them to kill themselves and they WOULD. If he told them to stop it and never gave a reason for it THEY WOULD.

He's so concerned about his image that it turns him into a passive coward and so he just lets them do as they please, well, for the most part. As a result, it makes problems for him down the road that he can't fix without completely countermanding everything done to that point.

True, his new nature as an undead is warping him to a degree, but it is still him in the body of Momonga at the end of the day. Draconis came about due in part to the lack of a solid counterbalance to him, a voice of reason with the power to back it up. I mean come on, the books are good, but 12 Volumes and not a SINGLE person to give him a challenge to make him think twice in a real serious manner?

The Frost Dragon was a JOKE. In a game and ruling where Instant Death spells generally SUCK, he's got the most insane RNG LCK. What happens when it doesn't?

 **XXX1994:** He might . . . he might not . . .

 **V for Valentine:** Thank you for reading and reviewing! I hope you continue to enjoy the story!

 **Omegadramon2:** You ask good questions! Oh and thank you very much for the compliment! To answer your questions.

Draconis hasn't needed to use his racial traits too much, so they haven't been mentioned or called out specifically. Right now he's operating mainly on straight equipment and stats. He figured out from the beastmen attacking Tildeus that his racial skills and traits would be overkill when class passives and the like render him invincible to low level stuff, which is what a majority of the New World so far is.

He doesn't feel predatory to humans because he's modeled after a True Metallic Dragons from Dungeons and Dragons, which are inherently good aligned and see no need to eat humans. His true form however, is none of the dragons in DnD, so when he does dragon out, there will be a full description. In fact they are more likely to help good ones and punish evil ones or even guide and redeem them if its worth the effort. To be fair, lesser dragons may have predatory instincts to attack and consume humans, but that isn't him. He is Ascended on top of that, so eating other sentients is rather disgusting to him.

Trust me, when he starts using them in full, they'll get called out and explained. As for Shalltear, well, he's got his hands full right now. We'll see. In canon, it was Day 7 after their transfer to the New World when she came under the effects of Downfall of Castle and Country. So he would not know yet. Heck, Ainz was informed by Albedo what happened to Shalltear until more than a whole day after she was affected!

* * *

 **Thanks for the reviews everyone! Enjoyed this chapter? Review and I'll see you guys again in the next installment!**


	9. Chapter 8 Queen of Knights Arrives

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress. Support the official release! Here we are with the next installment! Enjoy and review!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Queen of Knights Arrives**

* * *

Calca and her Twin Wings stood upon the deck of the ship provided for them by Delacroix and his wife. They stared off in the direction they traveled in, which gave them a clear view of the magically formed island in the distance. After the refusal from Alkaid of the Adventurer's Guild, they had been forced to devise a different approach to opening dialogues with the mystery city. Delacroix had suggested requesting the help of one of the fishing trade vessels at the docks and Calca had agreed. The three now found themselves on a ship sailing toward the "Warning Line" as the ship captain had told them.

Eventually, they met the Line.

" _Sea going vessel, you are approaching territory belonging to Avalon. Under order of the Queen of Knights, we advise you to redirect your vessel from this area. Failure to comply will be met with forceful redirection."_

Calca walked towards the bow of the ship and looked to the skies above them. Two circling rings of sky riders rotated in opposed rings. No doubt this formation they used was the sign of a highly organized and fluid working military.

"I am Calca Bessarez, Holy Queen of the Holy Roble Kingdom. I wish to open talks with your Queen!"

There was no response for a moment as the riders above them continued to circling. Eventually, when they all thought that perhaps they had not heard her, a single rider broke from the circling formations and descended toward them in a wide, cautious spiral. They could see the rider looking over the ship they were on. Probably for archers or other hidden threats.

After a few moments of orbiting the ship at their level, the riders slowly closed the distance before coming to a hover before them, yet still over the water. Looking at the young woman on her pegasus, they found the tales to be true . . . nay, insufficient! The deck workers stood or sat in awe. No one had seen these riders up close, and this was as close as many of them were probably ever going to get without being attack by one of them.

She was immaculately outfitted. The armor she wore did not gleam and shine, but was pristine. The little sheen that did make it through told of more than steel, but mithril. Light and hard, ideal for mounted units in a military force, but this was a flying unit! She had a sword in its sheath and a spear in her right hand at a relaxed stance. Her left hand comfortably grasped her winged steed's reins. She wore thigh-high boots with shin guards of blue and silver. A long coat lie beneath her armor, shielding her from cold winds without being bulky.

Her pegasus was also regaled in armor! Light, yet sturdy barding with a tabard over its chest with a pendragon blue dragon head roaring to the skies spoke of her loyalty. Was that a magical healer's staff in a holster on the saddle? A small set of javelins rested in secure containers on the opposite side of the saddle.

 _Aerial combat healers?! They sent their healer to talk with us? That's insane!_

Such a move confounded and confused Kelart and Calca. Remedios frowned at the move as well, even she wasn't that crazy. The spear and javelins though warned of a rider who could still kill you from out of your own reach. The thought of javelins from the sky did no one any good as some of the ship's crew glanced back up at the circling riders. If they all had the throwing weapons . . . it equaled death from above in more ways than just a diving charge.

"Your Majesty Queen Calca I presume?" The young rider's voice traveled over their ears. Those on the vessel half gaped. So young! She didn't sound a day over coming of age! Was she sixteen summers?

"I am she." Calca stepped forward and nodded.

"By order of the Queen of Knights, I am to deliver whatever message you may have for Her Majesty! Please state your business."

Despite this girl's youth, she was acting like a seasoned veteran. Kelart and Remedios could tell by not just her steel in the face of a Queen, but in her body language. She sat in the saddle with comfortable ease. Their was no fidgeting as her pegasus hovered before them. Was it due to the confidence in her fellow riders above her to protect or avenge her if something happened?

"I desire to speak with your Queen regarding your sudden appearance off the coast of Rimun's ports. I would like to become allies and perhaps friends if possible."

"My Queen would know when I arrive with your message if you speak on behalf of all your people? Your nobility and merchants, the common folk as well?"

That question threw her off balance mentally. Immediately, she knew that it was impossible to answer in the positive. The nobility were a fractured, bigoted lot and the Southern Kingdom did not agree with her rule, much less her as a Queen. The only one she could trust in the Southern Kingdom was her elder brother Caspond.

"I see . . ." The rider before them could see Calca's sudden unease and glanced at the two sisters. "You there, who attend her, is your kingdom fractured?"

Kelart and Remedios stepped up. Kelart was impressed. If this rider was instructed to ask such questions before her ruler even met with them, then this Queen of Knights was obviously experienced in the political realms. Acquiring such knowledge before a meeting garnered advantages and cut out a large amount of idle chatter at the discussion tables. She opened her mouth to speak.

"Our kingdom faces threats from demi-human tribes to our far east borders on a regular basis and we are reliant on our wall. We are unified in that cause."

The rider frowned as she responded. "That does not answer my question. Does your Queen speak on behalf of her people?"

"Of course she does. She's our Holy Queen!" Remedios jumped in to defend Calca's name.

The rider before them glanced around the ship and took in the scene before her before humming to herself in thought. She then looked to the sky at her fellow pegasus knights and then nodded after a moment of silence.

"Return to your city. You will receive a message anon."

She steered her mount away from the Rimun fishing vessel and flew straight toward the island before them, growing smaller in the distance at an formidable speed. The circling riders overhead continued to do so. The ship captain began shouting orders to his men to prepare the ship to return to port. Remedios turned to him incredulous.

"What are you doing?"

"She told us to return to Rimun. So that's what we're doing! Besides, a storm is approaching from the south! Don't want to get caught in the rain out here with the Queen on board. Won't end well."

They looked to the south and a storm was indeed beginning to close in. Thunder pealed through the air as shots of lightning could be seen on the occasion. The fliers above them dispersed and swiftly headed back to their home. It seemed like talks would not begin today after all.

* * *

 **Avalon**

* * *

Artorias was in the training hall of the castle watching a crowd of people cheer and encourage the two at the center of all the attention. Mordred and Gareth had apparently decided on some sparring today. She watched from a prime seat as the two stretched and limbered up. Lancelot would officiate the match. Word had traveled quickly and the hall was packed with knights and the common folk. Children watched with rapt attention as two of their greatest heroes were about to do honorable battle.

There were a series of rules for them to duel each other in a friendly bout.

First and foremost; basic gear only. None of their Legendary or God Tier equipment for this kind of fight. Granted, their sheer raw stats still rendered blows painful and devastating, but a killing blow in a single mistake was not allowable here. Should the worst happen and one killed another . . . even with [ _True Resurrection_ ] available, the monetary cost was something to be avoided if you could help it. Now that they were living with this, they all agreed that the risk should be put to the bare minimum.

Secondly, only to danger zone health. The moment one of their health points hit red zone, they were 'defeated'. No need to take things too far.

Thirdly, it was a circumstantial rule, but due to the number of spectators present and the risk of Friendly Fire being turned to "ON" . . . no AoEs past a certain area of effect. Due to the confined quarters of the training hall, many of both of their broad weapon skills were forbidden for this duel.

And Finally, keep it contained to the chamber they were in. As such, Artorias added a barrier that neither could escape from unless she allowed it. It was one of her Guild Leader perks. Usable only within the confines of Castle Pendragon itself, she could erect barriers to contain intruders or allies if needed. They could be broken through with effort, but with only starting gear, it wasn't feasible.

Gareth finished one final round of stretches before grinning at Mordred. Both of them were wearing Low Class items and weapons. She wore a sword on her hip, but wielded a halberd. Hefting it about to test its balance, she nodded in satisfaction. She wore simple breastplate with a half shoulder cape over her left pauldron.

Mordred wore a basic full plate with a hand and half sword gripped in both his hands as he put it through a few test swings. He wore a grin of anticipation that she shared. As the two entered the center of the hall, Lancelot approached between the two of them. He glanced at either of them before speaking loud and clear so all would hear him.

"Ser Mordred and Lady Gareth. You understand the terms of dueling within this hall and before our Queen." Both combatants firmly nodded their acknowledgement.

Lancelot motioned them forward. The two Knights of the Round Table came forward and shook hands with a smile.

"Best of luck to you Ser Mordred."

"To you as well Lady Gareth."

Stepping back to their positions, Lancelot called up the time clock. The numbers imposed themselves in the air.

"If no decisive victor is determined before fifteen minutes is up, then it will be called a draw. Take up stances!"

The crowd held their breaths in anticipation. Mordred set himself in a simple, balanced stance, his feet were shoulder width apart, the sword held in both hands pointed at a shallow angle straight at Gareth. His breathing calmed and steady.

Gareth however, went into a dramatic pose like that of a all star Olympic track athlete. Her left hand on the floor and her body almost impossibly low for her armor. Her halberd was held three-fourths of the way up the haft in her right and far up behind her vertical to the floor.

Lancelot and Artorias knew what she was about to do. Mordred knew as well. It was why he set himself in this stance. Gareth, for her part couldn't see her opponent anymore and so she didn't see what stance he was in. That was fine in her book. She knew he'd be in front of her at duel's start. All that was in her mind was her stance, her technique.

"Fighters . . . Reeeaaadyyyyyy!"

The audience gathered tensed. Artorias smiled, the viewers were behind her barrier and several yards away, though they would feel the fight from shockwaves and impacts. It was fun to watch a good duel between friends every now and then.

"Begin!"

Gareth shot forward like a missile; a crater appearing where her feet pushed her forward. Her weapon arm swung like a pendulum, using gravity like an accelerator as she thrust her weapon forward. Her head remained down as it passed her torso and using the inertia of the weapon passing her by, she allowed the physics of her arm gripping the weapon to propel her start like a race car with a running start. Her body uncoiled and her legs propelled her forward, enhancing her momentum further. Through it all, her head remained down, coming up only as she fully left her stance. This was to let her gain as much extra juice as possible from all the upward movements. All of this, combined with her weapon skill's nature, propelled her like a supersonic bullet from a rifle.

[ _Weapon Skill: Sonic Thrust_ ] was a simple, single hit skill that covered fifty yards in a line. The primary target hit had their physical defense ignored by a percentage based on the the location struck. The shockwaves of the line effect were sonic damage that hurt anyone within ten feet of the line of the charge. When used by a polearm, the attack power was doubled. A simple, but effective middle tier weapon skill. It had a ten second cooldown timer.

In that split second, she saw Mordred's eyes widen a fraction in surprise. Normally, such subtle real world sprinter techniques would have no bearing on the speed and execution of an attack skill, but this was no longer a game. The halberd's blade reached his own just as he finally reacted. He shifted the blade and his arms to the right, deflecting the head of the polearm as he moved his body out of the center line of her thrust and twisted himself to her right.

[ _Defensive Stance: Neutral Form_ ] combined with [ _Parry_ ] negated any single attack when timed perfectly, but could only be used once every 120 seconds unless canceled before activating.

He spun 180 degrees as she shot by, the wind generated by her rush blew hair, skirts, and cloaks about all over the audience. Ten paces . . . 25 feet covered in less than a half second . . . Mordred grit his teeth as he set himself again, this time with the sword at a sharper angle and set at a diagonal guard from right hip to left collar bone.

Gareth's feet hit the floor and she bounced up. A triple front flip landed her on the support pillar made of reinforced heart rock. Leaping back at Mordred, she pushed her body into a left to right spin as she held her weapon behind her back. The halberd rotated with her in a clockwise circle. Her hands firmly on either side of her torso as she brought her next attack full bore. Mordred recognized this one and brought his sword up above his head and slashed downward with both hands at full power.

[ _Aerial Circle_ ] met [ _Helm Splitter_ ] and the forward moment that Gareth had snuffed out after pushing him back several feet. Their weapon locked for a split second before Gareth let go with one of her hands as she spun away in a half rotation. Her remaining hand tightened its grip as she finished switching stances and let go of the lock by retreating her weapon two inches. Mordred slipped forward, his balance broken by the sudden slack.

She smirked as she stabbed forward, hoping to catch first blood. Mordred grit his teeth as the blow grazed his side. A line appeared on his armor though it wasn't deep enough to penetrate and draw blood. As he cursed his misjudged move, she stepped in with her right foot, too deep for him to block with his sword and gut punched him with her free right hand. He doubled over with a resounding "Oof!"

The audience members favoring Lady Gareth cheered wildly, she had landed the first true blow of the duel. Mordred returned the favor swiftly by punching her in the side of the ribs before swinging about with a hay-maker slash after spinning with the punch's momentum. By sheer reflex, Gareth spun her weapon around like a propeller behind her as she was spun around by his punch. The haft caught his sword swing and deflected it away from its intended target. The halberd came up and around before settling in another combat stance. This one more evenly balanced. Mordred cracked his neck and gripped the sword in his hands in both hands at a lowered, and rearward position.

Eyeing each other warily, both true landed blows hadn't been with weapons, but fists. It was something that Draconis and the rest of them had learned to do from the war. Your whole body was a weapon. Relying on just the tools you were issued was foolish. It restricted your options and mindset. Flexibility and adaptability in fights got you through. Punching, kicking, kneeing, elbow strikes, finger jabs . . . all of it could save your life when the weapons broke, jammed, or otherwise rendered unusable.

Granted, this was no war, so certain strikes and moves were obviously heavily frowned on. This was no life or death duel, so many of their dirtier tricks of survival in combat were strictly forbidden. It had helped them immensely in PvP during YGGDRASIL though . . . That they had even been able to do some of those things in the game's combat though did make them wonder . . .

Mordred dashed inside Gareth's reach as she went for a poke to intercept him. An upward slice narrowly missed her face as she leaned back. A foot lashed out as she kicked him in the chest in return and she stabbed low. Knocked back, he jumped into the air and came back down with the sword version of [ _Aerial Circle_ ]. Gareth parried the blow and lashed out with a stab with the pommel of the haft that sent Mordred sliding as he blocked it. Her peer came to a halt five feet away.

Mordred respected Gareth in a lot of ways and it was at times like this when he really appreciated her skill. Even though she did not favor PvP in YGGDRASIL like he and Lancelot did, she was supremely skilled. The halberd was widely considered in the game to be weak for its class and type. It didn't have the same single target defense ignoring abilities of spears. It didn't have the raw damage axes did. It was a reach weapon at its simplest, which meant that swords, daggers, and other in-close weaponry had a certain advantage when someone got within your reach. It wasn't light enough to be thrown effectively either.

Yet in her hands it was devastating. She utilized ever part of the weapon. Pommel, haft, axe head, spear tip, spike blade. Every single part of the weapon was deadly and could defend and attack. She made the weapon unpredictable, and that was where her impressive PvP record came from. The sheer number of surprised players who lost to her was astonishing. Her losses were almost always by small margins as well. Even Lancelot as a World Champion respected and feared her prowess if she got serious. Especially when she was not optimized for PvP to begin with.

She had changed her stance again, this time, choking up on the haft near the head of the weapon. She was getting serious now. Warm ups were over.

He rushed her with a piercing thrust that seemed to multiply. [ _Sword Rain_ ] was a multi-hit charging thrust that had a few variations. This was the most basic. Gareth went on the defensive as stab after stab came in. One caught on the haft, another deflected by the spear tip. Two more pushed away by the pommel. Yet three of them managed to slip by her defense and score light hits on shoulder and leg. The final attack of the skill got caught in the crux of the axe and spear and Mordred cursed mentally.

Gareth smirked as she brought her weapon around in a hooking motion, trapping his blade and pulling him toward her as she brought the pommel up and across with the intent to pull Mordred into a pommel strike across the face. The crimson adorned knight loosed his grip on the sword slightly, allowing it to pull his hand down to the pommel of its hilt as he swayed his torso and head back. The incoming blow passed half an inch from his nose as he rocked back and then came back forward. Regaining his grip of the sword as it finally came free from the crook of the halberd, he swung upward. Gareth brought matched his upward swing with a downward one as she countered her own momentum and the two locked weapons again.

"Good to see you haven't gotten rusty Gareth." Mordred smiled as they kept the lock going. They slowly circled each other. Gareth returned the gesture, her lips curled upwards.

"You too Mordred."

The two stepped away from each other but didn't lower their weapons. The crowd cheered their favorite knights as Lancelot and Artorias watched from their places. They had oddly missed this kind of thing.

The two combatants eyed each other for a moment before subconsciously agreeing to begin again. The two collided mightily as their weapons became blurs to the majority present. The sounds of steel on steel rattled the chamber like steel machine gun fire. Sparks flew as they exchanged blows until Mordred jumped skyward. He came crashing down on Gareth, the woman blocking with her weapon. The force of the blow made her sink into the floor.

[ _Horse Cleaver_ ] was an essentially [ _Helm Splitter_ ] from a jump. It dealt lots of damage when it landed and Gareth winced as she sank into the floor a bit. Even blocked it had a piercing and sundering effect. Shifting her weight, she noticed that the haft of her weapon was cracking and so she discarded it by letting go.

Using gravity as her weapon again, she drew the sword by her side and activated another skill [ _Double Crescent_ ]. Two slashes flashed out extraordinarily fast as she cut an 'x' shaped attack in the air above her. Mordred deflected one and then the other and slashed sideways only to be blocked by her own blade in an outside block. Bringing their blades up and over, she stopped her momentum as her blade leveled with the ground and glided her weapon up his sword and off the cross guard toward his neck.

His left hand came up in a fist and he knocked the blade away with a gauntleted back hand to the roof. Knocked off balance, Gareth clicked her tongue as he went for a stab at her torso. A greave reinforced knee came up and knocked his strike off target as she staggered backward.

Mordred and Gareth both took a second to retrieve their lost senses. The strength of their new bodies, the dexterity and agility, mental capacities and processing speeds were all unreal now. They had never felt quite like this, even in the game. They truly had become their avatars. It was actually startling and even invigorating. They both had amused grins on their faces despite the situation.

Gareth charged Mordred with a single hand strike from right to left. The blow was blocked by the heavy armored gauntlet yet again and he returned immediately with a counter that nearly connected with her forehead. She struck again and was parried by his blade as he brought it up and parallel to the ground. He used the opening to strike her in the center torso with a palm strike that sent her staggering backward.

Bursting from his position like a rocket, he covered the increased distance between them from his palm strike. [ _Shinsoku_ ] was a movement skill martial classes could learn at a total martial level of 50 that allowed for extreme movement charges. What he failed to account for was Gareth's acrobatic fighting style. She back flipped and caught him in the jaw with the heel of her boot. Finding himself airborne, he winced as she landed her flip and then spun and lashed out with a vicious sidekick that connected with his gut.

The blow sent him flying across the room and into a pillar. He bounced off and caught his footing just in time to see the tip of her blade at his eye. Ducking to the left, her thrust sank into the marble pillar halfway up the blade. [ _Supreme Uncanny Evasion_ ] was the only thing that saved him from the strike as it promised a 100% miss chance to the next attack that would hit the user.

The speed of her thrusting charges was unmatched by any other member of the Knights of the Round.

[ _Hypersonic Thrust_ ] was the high tier version of [ _Sonic Thrust_ ] and was almost impossible to avoid even if facing it head on. It dealt five times the damage of its predecessor, had piercing that still dealt 70% damage even blocked. It also could cover a hundred yards in a single use within a fraction of a second. The corridor of sonic damage was 25 feet wide in all directions of the path. Utterly devastating with a 20 second cooldown.

Not bothering to pull her sword from the pillar and risk giving him a chance to strike at her, she charged him again, dragging her blade through the pillar and flinging debris at him as it came free. Blocking it with a vertical defense with his hand-half sword, he spun and unleashed his own side kick. She took the blow with her free forearm and leaped back as his follow up slash crossed the air at chest level.

The two set stances again with eager glints in their eyes. Dashing in at the same instant, the two leveled lateral strikes at each other, neither one defending as they rushed in. Mordred's blade passed two inches higher than Gareth's as they passed over and under each other. Both blades met torsos at the same time, the metal clash of blades on armor screamed. In that split second of contact, their eyes widened in surprise. They were both using the same skill [ _Lateral Cleaver_ ]. A weapon skill that dealt increased damage based on damage already inflicted to an opponent.

Battle cries left their lips as they darted past each other, swinging through their opponent. A crack of air like thunder echoed throughout the chamber as they exchanged positions, freezing in place as they completed their follow through.

The crowd of onlookers held their breaths. Simultaneous blows! A karmic strike!

Gareth and Mordred suddenly left loose held breaths and planted their blades in the floor. Gareth clenched her side, as did Mordred. Both knights leaned heavily on their planted weapons.

"You used [ _Rampart_ ] and [ _Fortitude_ ] at the same time like I did?" Gareth asked between gasping breaths.

Mordred cringed as he nodded. Both were defensive skills. [ _Rampart_ ] granted a percentage of damage reduction for 25 seconds from all sources that were not the environment. [ _Fortitude_ ] increased your defensive stat by a total of 8% for 30 seconds. It was impressive when combined with each other.

"I did. Phew . . ." He collapsed on the floor, sitting with his back against his upright blade as he turned to face his peer. "Guess we did a fair amount of damage to each other despite the training blades?"

Gareth turned as she sat on the ground. She didn't lean on her blade, but forward as she sat cross legged. She gave him an annoyed look.

"Fair amount? I just hit the start of my mid-point . . . the yellow if we can call it that. At least, that's kind of how I feel. So about . . . hrmmm . . . eighty percent left?"

Mordred thought about that for a moment before nodding. He felt about the same if he was honest. Considering that unarmed strikes did not do tremendous damage unless you were a monk class type, it made sense. If their weapons skills hit dead on, he was sure they would both be a lot worse off.

"Sounds about right. Experiment complete then?"

Gareth nodded with a smile.

"I would say so! A draw then?"

The two stood and walked to each other. Shaking hands genially, they looked to Lancelot and nodded. The crowd cheered the show despite the result. Their protectors put on a fantastic display and it had been a welcome change of pace from the past few days of frantic construction and assessments. Lancelot nodded at their final decision.

"This duel is a draw!"

The audience cheered as Gareth and Mordred waved to the onlookers with smiles on their faces.

Amidst the cheers and appellation, a pegasus rider discreetly made her way to Artorias and knelt beside her. Noticing her, she nodded once. Being acknowledged, the rider spoke to the dragon blooded queen.

"A woman claiming to be the Holy Queen Calca Bessarez of the Holy Roble Kingdom wishes to speak with your Majesty. I questioned whether or not she spoke on behalf of her people."

"Her answer?" Artorias gave no indication that anything was off despite her interest. No need to rile up the people during their cheering and merry making.

"She hesitated. Her attendant, a paladin officer, mayhap their overall commander proclaimed it to be so, but looking around the ship she was on, their sailors and fishermen tell another tale. They were sent back with the message that you would send word anon."

Artorias lifted a hand her her chin in thought. That was troublesome. If she was not in favor with the rest of the nation she ruled, then political fractures, splinter groups, and nobles would nit pick anything agreed upon between them. It was an unfavorable situation at best.

"Anything else?"

"She also mentioned that demi-humans on their eastern most border constantly plague their people. The paladin seemed adamant that they were unified in that cause."

"I see. So the merfolk tales of their prejudices against demi-humans is rather validated. Yet not all demi-humans are base born barbarians. Hm . . . thank you for your report."

As she finished speaking thunder pealed through the air follow swiftly by rainfall, hard and heavy. Many who came to watch the duel groaned, as few had carried rain gear with them. Even though the roads and streets were worked stone and polished woods treated for such weather, it wasn't pleasant to be drenched when arriving home. Artorias chuckled at their reactions.

Standing from her seat, she raised a hand to garner everyone's attention.

"Good people of Avalon. In lieu of Ser Mordred and Lady Gareth's excellent show of martial prowess and the weather beyond these walls, those who wish to remain in the castle until the weather clears are welcome to do so. Those who must return home shall be escorted via carriage. Please be mindful of guardsmen and servants on shift for those remaining."

She walked towards her Knights as people cheered and thanks were shouted. Others in the chamber graciously accepted or declined the invitation. Gathered knights began escorting those who wished to return home to the stables where carriages were kept waiting. Other guardsmen and women escorted those remaining to public chambers of the castle to relax and wait out the storm outside.

"Gareth, Lancelot, Mordred, I wish to speak with you on the side. I received a messenger from the patrols and wish to hear your opinions before I make a decision."

A voice that was not any of the three drew their attention from each other.

"If I may intrude for but a moment my Queen. Would it be too much of a bother to beseech thee in joining you?"

A young man with straight brunette hair and black and gold garb of the nobility bowed to them. He wore an Avalonian officer's sword and his rank was pinned to his jacket lapels. A Knight Commander of the main army, he was directly subordinate to one of their fellow players. Beside him was Lady Lucretia Merces, Gareth's NPC.

"Well met Knight Commander. Lady Merces."

The two bowed before their liege and the Knights of the Round.

Lancelot address the commander with calm tones.

"I do not see an issue with such a request Knight Commander Crozwell von Houten."

Crozwell von Houten was Gawain's NPC and with Draconis help in fleshing out their respective guild NPCs, was Cecilia von Houten's husband.

"Very well then. If we all could retire to a meeting room?" Nods went around the small group and they filed out of the training chambers toward one of the meeting chambers farther inward. Outside, the rain poured.

* * *

 **Delacroix's Home**

* * *

Calca sat with Alicia and her husband as Kelart and Remedios left to attend to paladin order and church duties. The Treasure of Roble frowned into her cup of tea as the Governor and his wife discussed issues with fishing locations being disrupted due to the island city in the distance.

As the rain poured down accompanied by thunder and lightning, she frowned. Her thoughts were focused on the questions from that one rider who turned this whole endeavor upside down simply by following her liege's orders.

" _. . . you speak for your people?"_

That was it wasn't it? Simply satisfied with being a beacon of morale for the paladins and soldiers fighting demi-humans at the wall and across the eastern villages, she had not given any effort to actually leading. Despite her magical abilities from such a young age, she never had actually led the people much less the soldiers. In that regard, even Remedios was more experienced. Kelart definitely had the most experience out of all three of them in that regard, even more so than her older sister.

Kelart was head priestess and handled all the hard thinking. Calca had stopped attending important meetings politically and only ever trusted Caspond, but he lived in the southern portion of the kingdom. Even though she had made no critical errors in her rule thus far . . .

"Am I truly ruling? Or just existing?"

The Delacroix couple looked to her as she spoke her concern and worry out loud.

"is something the matter Your Majesty?"

A heavy sigh was the only answer they received. Alicia looked at her husband in concern. Delacroix walked over to Calca Bessarez and knelt before her.

"Your Majesty, are you thinking about the situation again?"

"I am Governor, yet I fear that I am out of my depth. When a mere patrolling soldier asks a question that I cannot in good faith answer in the positive, how does that reflect on me? On our kingdom?"

"Might I inquire as to the question that was asked of you?"

"If I was speaking on behalf of the people. The nobility and merchants and common folk."

The governing couple of the city recognized her dilemma immediately. The kingdom was not wholly unified. The nobility and merchant sections of the realm did not enjoy having Calca on the throne, but her kindness and lack of offense toward the majority of houses made many of them back off from their protests. However, it also meant that they merely took their squabbles over power and other such issues to the rooms away from the Queen. The royal family itself was also quite fractured and despite the threats from Abelion Hills, no real unified body existed in the kingdom.

He knew this, yet part of him and his wife Alicia felt that she needed to go through this hardship. Calca in their personal opinion, had severely handicapped herself and the kingdom by shying away from hardline stances in policies and retracting into seclusion instead of facing problems and political gatherings. Ruling by proxy based on the attendance and opinions of Kelart and Remedios Custodio, which in his opinion was a doomed endeavor.

This new island nation of Avalon and its Queen of Knights were obviously made of far superior, sterner steel, with solid foundations in regards to its political views and societal treatment of its military. The report of the rider that spoke to Calca by the sailors had reached him shortly after their return.

A girl so young as to be considered just coming of age . . . fifteen at the least! Yet she spoke and handled herself like a veteran. A professional soldier at her age! How long had she been a squire or page under a senior mentor figure? Never mind that the sailors said that she had been outfitted immaculately, putting even paladins of decent standing to shame with her armor and raiments, much less the spear she carried.

If that was a patrolling group, what was their main army comprised of?

"I see. Perhaps you should merely remain honest and open. This Queen of Knights does not strike me as one prone to rash actions so long as those she is speaking with are being rational and level headed. They have not assaulted the city, or made attempts to make demands. Probing into their areas have not called down steel on our heads either. Perhaps you merely need to wait for them to be ready to open talks?"

 _Is it really that simple?_

Nodding once, she glanced out the window.

"What?"

She stood from her seat as her eyes widened in disbelief. Approaching the window, she stared at the sight beyond the glass. Delacroix looked out the window as well only to to have his jaw drop at the sight as well.

Though the rain and clouds along with the approaching night had significantly darkened the skies, they could see it clearly. A cluster of riders steadily made their way across the waters. The horses walked on water! Each of the riders had a glowing soft blue sphere of light above and before them, shedding illumination for the horses to see by. Each was wearing a full hooded cloak to shield themselves from the rain.

There were seven total riders. As they approached, she could see the far left and right riders held aloft banners of that brilliant blue with the dragon's head roaring to the skies. The rider to the immediate right of the central figure presented a pure white, blank banner. She recognized this as the flag of parley.

The guards at their posts were surely panicking by the sight of seven cloaked riders approaching. If this was not the message she was told to expect, then she did not know what would be. Delacroix came to the same conclusion and summoned a runner.

"Rush to the port docks with all due haste. Guide them her to the manor and offer them whatever courtesy you are able. They are envoys of that city across the sea."

The young man nodded and rushed out while hastily donning a rain cloak. As he did, Delacroix roused any and all of the night staff at the manor and called them to the central foyer. Eyes cast concerned and curious looks alike at their employer. What was going on this late in the day? They had only just begun their shifts.

"Your attention please. This is sudden, but I require your best as a contingent from the city of the island has appeared."

Gasps rippled through the staff members. The alabaster city of the crystal tower sent people? In this weather? Delacroix clapped his hands loudly to demand their attention.

"A runner has been sent to guide them here as we speak. I want the stables ready to receive their horses and attendants to see to their cloaks. Cooks are to be ready with whatever the best of our refreshments we have. This is not only for them, but our Queen, as she is meeting with them tonight. Be on your best behavior and skill."

They all straightened. To prepare guests of the Queen?! They nodded and at his nod of dismissal, they all went into a frenzy organizing. Stable hands rushed to their positions and began sprucing up and scattering fresh hay as they cleared old material. Fresh water was poured into drinking troughs.

The cooks and kitchen staffers went about swiftly taking inventory of the best they had in stock. A fine red wine of top shelf vintage was brought out of the cellar. A fresh cheese wheel was prepared with ripe fruits and fresh bread from earlier that evening was brought out. Dishes of recently churned butter and smoked meats were meticulously placed upon platters.

The cooks prepared a meal on parchment to begin at a moments notice as well in case the guests had not yet taken supper. Maids and butlers went to servants chambers to freshen up a bit more. No details were spared as they scrambled about. Yet despite the hurried nature of their rushing, there was order and procedure to it all. No screaming was heard, only clear and precise instructions, questions, and answers. It was all quite professional. Delacroix and his wife were proud of them. They were paid well, much better than standard servants. The couple made sure to present them with adequate bonuses for the sudden demand tonight.

During the rushing about, Calca approached them in the foyer.

"Governor Delacroix, Lady Alicia."

The two bowed to her.

"I wish to greet them when they arrive. Might you allow me to do so?"

"Of course Your Majesty. We would be with you to do so since Remedios and Kelart are out on business this evening."

As she nodded, a messenger appeared before them.

"Milord, Your Majesty, they are approaching the gate now."

The three of them nodded and readied themselves to greet whoever it was beyond the doors of the foyer.

Outside, the attendants and other serving staff struggled not to gawk at the sight of seven beautiful steeds, one of which had folded wings! They all were adorned in barding and tabards so refined and elegant that it was unimaginable to be used in true combat. Each of the cloaked riders dismounted as their guide bowed to them. The young boy was awestruck having guided them here. The lights above each rider did not fade as their feet touched the soaked ground.

They all wore brilliant blue cloaks with the symbol of the dragon on the back of them. All except for the central rider, who was also the second shortest of them. This one wore a pure white cloak embroidered in gold. The corners of them held a shining gemstone in each that sparkled like a rainbow. Her hood was kept over her head by a golden chain that drooped from the top of the front.

The head stableman approached and bowed low as he addressed this group. Never had he seen such fine horses, and he had been working stables for more than twenty years!

"Honored guests. If you would allow us to take care of your horses." He gestured to the stables a short distance away.

They had enough space for these fine creatures and then some. One of th riders turned to him and approached with slow steps. The figure stopped short of him and he could feel the eyes on him. The voice that came from the hood surprised them. It was a woman!

"I would inspect your establishment stablemaster. The other steeds may rest easy, but Shadow Star is finicky."

The winged steed stamped its hooves and spread its wings for all to see as if emphasizing its mistresses words. The servants swallowed or gasped lightly. The wings spread more than a dozen feet and its wingless cousins whinnied in response though they did not shy or rear up.

"Yes, of course!" The cloaked woman motioned for him to show the way and she fell into step behind him. None of the other figures moved from their spots, but remained in the rain as they watched their comrade leave for a moment.

The men and women in the stable tensed as they saw the stable master enter with not horses, but a cloaked individual who began to slowly glance about the place. The hood was pulled back by gauntleted hands and more than one of them felt their jaws drop a bit. Rich, golden blond hair cascaded from the hood like molten gold, untouched by the rain. She was gorgeous, clear eyes took in each of them in turn as she walked through the stables. She looked into each of the stalls, sniffed the air, and ran a hand along the wood pillars.

She approached the watering trough and took a whiff of the water and wrinkled her nose a bit. She was doing all the things that the stable master had done just minutes before. Was this beautiful woman a horse master? She held a hand over the watering trough and her voice could be heard by those inside.

"[ _Purify Water_ ]."

A gentle ripple washed over the whole trough and gasps left their lips. A magic caster in armor? Was she a paladin?

"Forgive the spell stable master, but our horses are not yet used to the local water sources. No need to have our steeds cause you and yours undue mess."

The old stable master nodded and bowed in acceptance of such consideration. He was impressed by the young woman's keen eye and thorough inspection before letting them take their horses. It was a hallmark of good horsemanship and breeding. He already took a liking to these guests, or this one at least.

"No offense is taken milady."

"I do apologize, but I will attend to Shadow Star myself. She is finicky, and I fear she will bite or kick anyone she is not familiar with in these foreign lands."

He nodded to this as well. That winged steed seemed very spirited and a single rider mount. He doubted anyone other than this woman would be allowed to approach it, much less ride it. She turned to the doors and whistled. The tune seemed to defy human ability to produce sound as it sounded like a flute's trill. The sounds of hooves steadily approaching gave them their answer.

The horses entered one and a time at a leisurely pace. Each of the steeds entered a stall at her mere gesture. Finally, the last two entered. The winged steed drew wide eyed stares of awe. Said mount seemed to glance about the placed and nodded its head in seeming approval. It cantered up to its mistress and nudged her playfully with its snout. The woman laughed.

"Alright you. That's quite enough of that. Into a stall." The steed entered and snorted once. "Behave. You shan't receive a sugar cube if you do not."

The steed seemed to understand this condition and calmed considerably. The final horse stood proudly and seemed to have an intellect all its own. The other horses seemed to acknowledge this one as superior, even the winged one felt like it was subservient to this one.

"Llamrei, come here lady." The horse approached slowly, regally and let this woman take its reins. "I know you did not enjoy the rain, but you'll be dried and combed. Enjoy the time out of the castle yards."

The horse allowed itself to be guided into a stall. The stable attendants were amazed. She had not spoken a word to most of the horses and they merely followed like she was a herd's alpha. Turning to the stable master, she nodded once firmly.

"Our horses ate not too long ago, so water only if you would. They should behave well, but they will act up if someone tries anything they find suspicious. These are not riding horses, but warhorses. Please be mindful of that detail."

The man nodded seriously. He had been on the wall for a few years before settling with this job. Warhorses were not so easily startled like their more peaceful brood, but when they were, it usually didn't end well for whoever startled them if they were human. Given that these seemed to be even more intelligent than was normal made it abundantly clear to him that anyone to tried anything funny wouldn't have to worry about the horses owner, but the horse itself.

Satisfied, she gave the man a short bow and brought her hood back over her head before leaving the way they came.

"I've never seen such horses before!"

"She was so elegant and beautiful . . ."

"Who is she? A paladin? Are our guests from that island all like her?"

Talk hummed back and forth between all the hands in the stable after she was clear of sight. The stable master could not blame them. Even he was impressed and awed by her presence. She had to be a high ranking soldier of their guests, but to inspect the stables before letting them take the horses? That was usually a duty assigned to a page or squire. Perhaps something in their structure differed fundamentally from their own? Shaking such thoughts from his aging mind, he clapped his hands loudly.

"Alright you lot! You heard our guest! They have already eaten, so no feed tonight. Just make sure that the water is kept full for the horses. Also call a cleric from the church to purify the water each time we refill it. No need to make these guests upset that their mounts got sick from unfamiliar waters."

The stable hands nodded as a whole and began carrying out their instructions.

Back out at the front courtyard, the servants were beginning to feel a bit uneasy as the remaining six guests merely stood there, watching the direction that one of their own left in with the stable master. When one of them had asked them to come in out of the rain, the cloaked figure to the immediate right of the white shrouded one held up a hand.

"We are fine for the moment. I thank you for the consideration, but we shall not move from this spot until our own as returned and our horses handled."

As they wondered what he meant by that, a lyrical whistle that sounded more like a flute came from the stables. The horses turned and began clopping towards the stables. As they disappeared from sight, each of the servants wondered at the lyrical call that the horses answered. Was that from the one who went with the stable master?

A moment later, their cloaked friend returned and nodded toward the leader of their group.

"The stables are fine. I've already informed the stable master that they have already eaten and only require water."

"Thank you Beaumains."

The two voices that came form the cloaks were feminine. It perked the interest of the women of the servants. Who were these women who warranted places as envoys? The man who spoke earlier stepped forward.

"Apologies for making you all wait when you are merely following instructions to greet us. Thank you for your patience."

The group of servants were shocked for a moment. Envoys, people of higher station apologizing for making them wait? They were the ones doing their jobs waiting on these guests. The central figure motioned to her fellows and they approached. Two servants attended to each of them. As the cloaks came off and were taken to the side, the servants either held gasps or swallowed mentally. The first two were obviously soldiers, not just standard bearers. The man wore plate mail and wore a long coat that seamlessly melded with her armor. Blues and golds peeked out from his protection. He wore a longsword of fine quality. The woman seemed no older than her mid twenties and wore breastplate and greaves. However, she wore a heavy battle skirt that went to just below her knees as was pleated. Her gloves were of supple leathers and covered in light metal sections for added defense. It was obvious that she was geared for a more mobile form of combat than her compatriot.

As they finished, the two took up positions just inside the covered entrance and stood at a vigilant attention. The next two to shed their cloaks drew a gasp from one of the younger members, though she hid it rather well.

Another woman and man. The woman was exotic, her tanned skin stood out among everyone present. Blond hair held in a bun was tipped in emerald green. She possessed clear, violet eyes that held a hint of mischief about them. Her clothing was equally exotic, none of them had ever seen such cloths except for when the Adventurer's Guild leader Alkaid wore them, and even then they were nothing this elegant! An outer blue-almost indigo covered a semi transparent light green underneath. That layer sat between her inner most robes that were of reds and maroons. The enormous double tome drew their attention and hidden wariness. The cover was lined and etched in gold with runes strewn all about the covers and spines! A member of their magic casters? A master magic caster?

The man with her was equally dressed, though his ensemble was much darker than his peer's. Jet black colored his clothing all over. He wore no armor at all, but immaculate slacks were neatly tucked into knee high boots. An ornate longsword resided in a scabbard that was jeweled and laden with gold and silver. A swallow tailed coat, something they had never seen before, was held closed by its double breasted buttons. He wore leather gloves of white. The epaulets of the jacket were rimmed in gold and the collar held a pair of pins that must have denoted his rank or house. It was all crafted from a fabric that they had no idea what it was, so fine was its weave. It looked like ink in its glossy sheen. A single golden chain traveled from one of his breast pockets to a button on the jacket.

This was all absolutely overwhelming as the two joined the soldiers at the door as the next two stepped forward. The woman who had gone to the stables and the man that had spoken and apologized on their behalf. If the ranks were ascending as they approached to be tended to, then who were these two and the one that remained?

As their cloaks came off, the servants who had approached to take their rain gear swallowed. Beautiful blond hair held in a lavish loose tail draped over one shoulder. Her breastplate armor gleamed in the magical lights that still hovered above them all. She wore a half cape over her left that was bright violet in color with golden filigree. Her tasset armor was light and sturdy and framed her skirts that fell to just mid calf. Her surcoat was also a mix of violets and golds. What looked like a family crest was emblazoned on the right tail of the coat. A unicorn with wings, like that of the winged steed she rode in on, was framed in a brilliant golden halo.

She wore a sword with an elaborate hilt guard by her side. Her gloves were white and fingerless. Lightweight greaves of silver and gold held no spurs for her horse. All of her ensemble screamed high nobility even more than the two before her. The armored breastplate was also laced in gold and a white metal that seemed to shift and ripple across its home, giving the illusion of water.

The man ran a gauntleted hand through cinnamon brown hair that was kept mid length just past his ears. Long bangs covered his right eye that held a green coloration. He wore full plate armor of stark white. His crimson surcoat and dark gray full cape that draped to his shins gave off an aura of authority. The sword he wore on his left and just a bit farther behind than one would normally position their sword was an oddity in its simplicity. A finely crafted, yet simple cross guard of silver and gray with black leather grip peeked out from the cape. Even the scabbard was simple, a stark gray all the way through. No doubt it was strictly a combat weapon.

The back of his cape held also resembled a family crest. A sword held in a fist with it's blade shattered in places was woven into the single piece cloth in dark crimson.

These two formed up with the previous four and looked collectively to the final, white cloaked figure. She stepped forward and the six colleagues of hers went to one knee as a single entity. The action made the two maids who approached her stop dead in their tracks.

Who was this person? It couldn't be . . . but was it?

A light, amused voice came from the still cloaked woman.

"Here now. You lot go to a knee and these young ladies are now more paranoid than a fresh nursemaid to her first newborn babe."

Four of them chuckled at her playful admonishing.

"Do not mind their actions nor fear their ire, very few can garner that if you merely perform your duties well."

Something about her words and voice not only put them at ease, but promised protection, succor, justice, and compassion. Galvanized by her reassurance, the two maids bowed to her before proceeding to remove her cloak. As they did so, their eyes widened. This one was not like the others! The material was some form of woven metal that was so fine that it seemed as cloth! How much would such a thing even cost?

The cloak came off to reveal a sight that none could help but gasp audibly at. A young woman with silky brunette hair held in a single pony tail at the base of her skull gazed before her with eyes that quite literally glowed around the rims of her irises! There were no ears, but scaled horns that spread back and slightly out. Her neck and bridge of her nose were scaled in ink black glossy scales! A small tiara shaped crown of white gold with sapphires adorned her head. Earrings draped from slots in her horns where ears would normally be and they gleamed in the light like rainbows.

She wore a regal blue surcoat with no armor at all. Long gloves that came up past her elbows were of a dark black. The collar was adorned in gold and sapphire pins that kept fine chains connected across her collar. The coat flowed to her knees. Knee length boots of black and gold had a slight heel to raise her height slightly. A flowing scarf wrapped loosely around her neck with tails over her left breast and back down the right of her back in pure white. A sash of indigo traversed her left shoulder to her right hip underneath the scarf. Though she wore no armor at all, she was armed. Two swords that appeared to be some kind of set rested on either side of her hips. Both of them were so intricate and finely crafted that no human hands could ever have forged them. Strange writing encased the scabbard on her left. It's partner was also adorned, but it was fully encrusted with some kind of burnished golden runes.

She smiled and took a step forward. It was then that they noticed something sway back and forth. A tail! This woman had a tail black as night and finned at its tip! It sashayed with the tails of her long coat. Coming to a stop in the middle of her six followers, she nodded slowly to the Head Maid. The older woman bowed.

"I am the Head Maid of Governor Delacroix. Matilda. We are honored to receive you this evening."

"Well met Matilda. I come with two of my Commander's trusted subordinates and members of my inner circle. Lady Merces is a dean of our Magic Academy and a tactician by trade. Knight Commander Crozwell is a veteran of many campaigns and leads our Fourth Heavy Calvary. Ser Mordred is one of my inner most circle and one of my most trusted knights. Lady Gareth is the supreme commander of our Pegasus Knights and overall commander of our Aerial Corps."

Each of the members of the group stood and then bowed as they were formally introduced. Faces of the staff ranged from awed to paled as they began to realized just who was speaking. Few dared refer to these people as "their inner circle".

Finally, the woman smiled in full. It was beautiful and frightening all at once. She had fangs!

"I am Artorias Faye Pendragon. Queen of Avalon."

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 **Well, you guys get lucky and get TWO Character Profiles with this one.**

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 **Character Profile 9**

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 **Gareth "Beaumains (Fair Hands)" Tellius**

 **Human**

 **Position: Knight** of the Round, Supreme Commander of the Pegasus Knights

 **Residence:** Crystal Castle Pendragon, The Lair (Guest)

 **Alignment:** Good (+300 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** N/A (Humanoid)

 **Class Levels:** Knight = 15 lvs.; Cavalier = 10 lvs.; Beastmaster = 15 lvs.; Pegasus Knight = 10 lvs.; Cleric = 15 lvs.; High Priestess = 10 lvs.; Alicorn Knight = 5 lvs.; Duelist = 5 lvs.; Commander = 10 lvs.; Supreme Commander = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [100 Class Levels]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 80

 **MP:** 65

 **Physical Attack:** 80

 **Physical Defense:** 75

 **Dexterity:** 65

 **Magical Attack:** 45

 **Magical Defense:** 70

 **Resistances:** 75

 **Special:** 95

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 **Character Profile 10**

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 **Mordred**

 **Human**

 **Position:** Knight of the Round, Master Duelist

 **Residence:** Crystal Castle Pendragon, The Lair (Guest)

 **Alignment:** Lawful Neutral (+50 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** N/A (Humanoid)

 **Class Levels:** Knight = 15 lvs.; Arms Master = 10 lvs.; Duelist = 5 lvs.; Judge = 10 lvs.; Arbiter = 5 lvs.; Hunter = 15 lvs.; Daemon Slayer = 10 lvs.; Dark Knight = 10 lvs.; Carnifex = 5 lvs.; Fighter = 15 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [100 Class Levels]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 95

 **MP:** 30

 **Physical Attack:** 95

 **Physical Defense:** 95

 **Dexterity:** 50

 **Magical Attack:** 40

 **Magical Defense:** 75

 **Resistances:** 85

 **Special:** 100

* * *

 **Here come the Review Responses . . .**

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 **Solarblaster:** I agree with you on that. Thanks for the review and hope you continue to drop in the reviews!

 **PervySageChuck:** She will get her comeuppance. No need to worry about that.

 **(Guest):** It was a reference to ARNOLD. I know that the later models would've been better, but in the New World a single T-500 would be like a Soul Eater. It would spark national declarations of emergency. The vast majority of the continent would not be able to stop one. Sure magic changes things quite a bit, but against the human nations? The losses suffered would be nation ending.

 **Arawn92:** You'll have to read on to find out! Not giving away plot.

 **RyuujiVantek:** Thanks for the review. I'm glad you like Avalon's side of the story so much! Neia will appear in due time. I like her character quite a bit.

 **XXX1994:** Concerning the anime, you might be right about that. We shall see! Ratotosker is kinda like Gargantua, but not really. She's something the devs made, not something players did. She is a well and true Final Boss Raid Class. Not to be trifled with.

Concerning Shin Yoshitsune Kai . . . well, he's dead . . . like dead DEAD. He ain't coming back. What happened to him will be covered as Alkaid and Avalon's members meet and talk though, so look forward to that.

God Tier, Divine Tier. Some translations say God Tier, others say Divine Tier. All of Ainz's rings are God Tier. As is the majority of his equipment. It's interchangeable. Not many players have God/Divine Tier stuff, even at level 100. But given the power levels of the guilds of Avalon and Ainz Ooal Gown, being past a certain number threshold kinda makes one assume that due to that kind of rank, that they would have God/Divine Tier gear.

 **UndeadLord22:** Not for everyone, but some of them may go right. . . .

 **MadDan90:** Glad you like the OC's. I know very well how OC's can be very badly viewed. I strive to flesh them out character wise before powers come into play. Not all OC's need to be OP to be liked.

 **Thristan:** Ever hear the phrase, "Dumber than a rock"? Even a rock knows its place. You are right in that regard. Just because you learned it in a book does not by any means translate to real world issues. Sometimes it helps . . . but applying it is what is important, and most people are incapable of it, which is both saddening, and terrifying.

 **Omegadramon2:** You will see. Ainz and Nazarick will have their time in the sun. Just have to finish working on the others incidents along the early timeline of Overlord first. Draconis actually does like the concept behind Shalltear's design, if not her sexual nature . . . a vampire weak to holy skills that still uses them? Intriguing . . .

Yeah, when Draconis finds out about Hamuuske . . . oh boy . . . and that she's a female? Oh dear . . .

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 **Everyone who reviews gets a cookie! Thanks so much for reviewing this story as it updates! I firmly believe that it influences writers to keep pressing onward! Enjoy this one everyone!**

 **Don't be afraid to drop a review with a question or two and comments on the chapter. See ya next time! The talks between Holy Queen and Queen of Knights begin! How will the revelation of Artorias's non-human nature influence these talks? Find out next time!**


	10. Chapter 9 Revelation

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official release.**

 **Well, here it is. The meeting you have been anticipating for the past few chapters! I hope that I did this justice. Writing intrigue and political maneuvering is hard enough. Keeping it interesting and captivating . . . that's hard.**

 **Also apologies as this one is a little on the shorter side. Continuing too far after the ending of this one strides into the next chunks of story with other characters, so here we go!**

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 **Chapter 9: Revelation**

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"I am Artorias Faye Pendragon. Queen of Avalon."

Her voice rang with a clear tone that seemed to resonate with them all. Despite her moderate stature, she seemed to take up the entire courtyard with her presence. Where Calca Bessarez held an aura of kind compassion and gentleness, this woman's aura was so much stronger. Yet despite its overwhelming pressure, it was not hostile or malicious. It was merely her charisma and personality. Someone who knew what she was doing and knew how to elevate others to their absolute best.

The woman folded her hands behind her back as she smiled softly.

"I am to understand that Queen Bessarez wished to speak with me. Therefore I have come to speak in person. Messengers can make mistakes and accidents can occur in the delivery. After discussing the manner in which we should open discords with my advisors, it was decided that I should come in person."

Matilda nodded and motioned for them to follow her inside to the foyer. The six subjects of the Queen of Knights stood and formed a protective ring around Artorias. Like points of a hexagon, little would get to her without passing at least two of them before hand. Even though none of them exuded killing intent or malice, the servants and staff could tell that these were veterans and skilled beyond compare.

Inside the foyer Delacroix, his wife Alicia, and Queen Calca Bessarez stood waiting as the doors opened to reveal Matilda. The woman bowed to them and made her announcement.

"Milord, milady. Your Majesty. Our guests have arrived. I announce Her Majesty, Artorias Faye Pendragon and her contingent."

The soldiers entered first before stepping opposite of each other and making space for those following them in. Lucretia and Crozwell entered and bowed to them before stepping aside as well. Artorias stepped forward followed half a step on either side by Gareth and Mordred.

Delacroix swallowed. They were all impressive. Each and every one of them carried themselves with a level of professionalism that spoke of having done this many times. Alicia was surprised and taken back. Other than the Queen before them, there was equal representation of the sexes. Was this the influence of their ruler or something else?

However, the most startling revelation was the identity of the Queen of Knights. She was not human. Her hands were folded behind her back, but they could clearly see the swept back horns instead of ears. The scales over the bridge of her nose and covering her neck. The tail that quietly flicked back and forth in a peaceful rhythm also stood out. Her clothing was immaculate, far better than even Calca's dress, though they dared not say that out loud. Despite the scales, horns, and tail, none of her inhuman features detracted from her beauty, rather, they enhanced it. They were glossy in appearance and smooth, not rough patches. Her glowing eyes also held depth to them that spoke of a lifetime of experience despite her youthful appearance.

Artorias bowed to them, and her companions did so as well.

"Your Majesty Calca Bessarez. I am Artorias Faye Pendragon of Avalon. My companions and I are here in response to you desire to open discussions."

Calca was taken back that another ruler would so easily bow to another. Delacroix and his wife returned the bow and she regained her wits. She bowed as well, though came up smoothly before speaking.

"As Holy Queen of the Holy Roble Kingdom, I am honored to receive you and yours Your Majesty Artorias Pendragon. Tell me, have you had the opportunity to take supper?"

The group rose from their bows and Artorias smiled softly.

"We have not, for our people are currently rationing what food supplies we do have while garnering other methods of supplying and harvesting what we have lost due to our sudden transportation." She held up a hand to forestall any offers. "Please do not inconvenience your kitchen staff. While my people suffer, I would be remiss in partaking of well prepared food when my own must subsist on bland fare. Simple drinks will suffice, as food can cloud thoughts and discussions of import."

The two armed and armored individuals just behind her on either side nodded in approval of her words. Each of the other four also nodded in acceptance of her proposition. Delacroix was stunned. A ruler who would suffer as her people did? Calca faltered a bit at the Queen before her. This was different in every way from what she was used to seeing out of nobles and her Royal Family members.

"Very well. Shall we adjourn to the meeting room?"

"Please."

Calca turned to Delacroix and he motioned for them to follow him. He looked to his wife and motioned with his eyes to the kitchens. Alicia discreetly nodded and left to the kitchens to relay the odd news to not prepare any supper for their guests. It was sure to cause an uproar.

As Delacroix and Calca led them to the meeting room, now just the dining hall sans meal, the two were absorbed in their own thoughts. Those that followed them who wore armor made less noise than thought possible in such equipment. Remedios clanked in her plate armor, but the man with gray and crimson trappings made so little sound by comparison, it was hard to believe than he was really there.

Entering the room, the servants inside bowed to them. As Artorias and her contingent filed in, they glanced at their lord and he nodded firmly. They noted that Mordred, Crozwell, and the male soldier pulled the chairs out for the ladies and queen with them to sit in before pushing them up to a comfortable distance from the table before sitting themselves. Each of the women quietly thanked them for the gesture as well. After they were all situated, Delacroix started off.

"Your Majesty Queen Pendragon. I am Albert Delacroix; Governor of Rimun. I thank you for your patience and temperance concerning any vessel or curious party from our ports that may have come too close in proximity to your patrols."

A neutral nod answered his words. The blond woman in armor answered him with a voice that was younger than he had imagined, yet steeled despite its playful nature.

"Anyone would be curious after an island and city appear out of the blue in the middle of an ocean off of your ports Governor Delacroix. Some of my subordinates did mention how many were curious as they returned from patrols. Some of those were more polite than others, but I doubt you can control that kind of thing. No harm was done, so none was done in return. Nor do we hold it against you."

Her small smile accompanied a glint in her eyes that made him nervous. Who was this woman to answer for her queen?

"May I ask who you are milady?"

"I am Gareth Tellius, Knight of the Round Table directly under Her Majesty Artorias Pendragon. I am the Supreme Commander of our aerial forces."

Her words made those not of their party in the room swallow and tense a bit. A woman led all of the flying units that could be seen patrolling the skies around the island? Knight of the Round Table? What did that mean? Did it mean that she was part of the Queen's inner circle? Someone who had the ear of the sovereign of that city?

"Then I must thank you as well for commanding such well disciplined troops Lady Tellius."

Nodding her acceptance, The man with cinnamon hair and plate armor spoke next.

"We were waiting for some form of contact from an official delegation from your kingdom. It came as a bit of a surprise to hear from the Queen herself. However I do not see the two who were reported to be accompanying you in our flyer's report."

Delacroix and Calca knew that he was speaking about Remedios and Kelart. They were still in the city, but duties at the church and paladin stations had called. He wondered to himself just how long they would have before they returned. Seeing the Queen of Knights was not human concerned him as to reactions. Especially when all of her compatriots before them were quite human.

"Duties called them elsewhere this night."

The group before them nodded. Artorias lifted her right hand palm up to them as she spoke.

"We have heard various reports and second hand knowledge about your kingdom from the merfolk that reside in the ocean waters they call home. Not much of it is very flattering if they should tell it. However!" She spoke firmly to forestall any rebuff. "I am someone who believes as I was taught by my most dear friend in the world, that there is always two sides to a coin. So I wish to verify facts from rumor and fiction. What better manner than speaking with those citizens of the kingdom themselves?"

Calca seemed to relax a bit at her reasoning, but Delacroix did not. Rather, he grit his teeth and clenched his jaw tightly. He knew the tales the merfolk had probably told them, and sadly, much of it was actually correct. Someone like Calca, who willingly withdrew from everyday affairs and political meetings was far outside the know. An ignorant dreamer who failed to truly grasp the harsh realities of the world around them. Even though that innocent purity was something that did indeed inspire the soldiers when she walked among them, it meant nothing in the face of war and invasion.

He could easily tell that despite the presentation and ceremony that this group from the island nation of Avalon, they could also probably fight on a level exceeding their paladin order. Judging by the pair of swords she wore and the title she bore, he bet that Queen Artorias could fight as well if not better than her army's elite.

"A wise and admirable decision Your Majesty. I apologize but I feel that I must agree with the merfolk on much of what they may have told you."

Genuine surprise crossed all faces present regardless of party. The group from Avalon exchanged thoughtful and concerned looks at each other. No whispers traveled between them however. Artorias closed her eyes in contemplation as the others looked to each other in various turns. It was all a bit unnerving for the servants, Calca, and Delacroix.

"We have heard much from the merfolk who have been generous in assisting us, but you make assumptions to the content of such information Governor Delacroix. I ask that you enlighten us as to what it is that you believe we have been told."

He nodded and began to speak. Calca sat by with concern on her brow. This was not how she wanted this to proceed.

"Your Majesty, the Roble Holy Kingdom has been constantly plagued by – apologies – demi-humans from our eastern borders from a region known as Abelion Hills. It is a lawless land filled with numerous tribes constantly at war with each other. The Great Wall was constructed to repel them from entering our borders, but we can hardly man every section of it. As a result of this, we have been assaulted and raided at times. The brutality of which does little to endear them to our people."

"I see. So these prejudices extend to all demi-humnas regardless of their origin? Even those not of Abelion Hills? What of dwarves, elves, and such?"

"The same I'm afraid. We here at Rimun are far away from the eastern border, so it is not as prevalent, but we do have militia and soldiers who go to the wall as a matter of required law. It brings the prejudice mindset back."

The blond woman with tanned skin and emerald green tipped hair spoke next. Her voice was soft and elegant, but held a mischievous undertone.

"So you mean to say that this wall, being manned by a large number of men and women alongside an order of paladins are fighting demi-humans that approach the wall you have. Am I getting that right?"

He nodded and she sighed. Her voice became a level heavier and more serious. There was even an annoyed undertone.

"Governor, Your Majesty Bessarez. Has the thought occurred that perhaps some of their number. Not all of them mind you, but a number of them. Are not invading you intentionally, but fleeing from the hells of that warring region?"

The suggestion made them push back into their seats. The servants who heard this looked to each other in shock. What kind of suggestion was that? Calca frowned as she spoke.

"What do you mean by that exactly?"

"Forgive me. I am Lucretia Merces. Subordinate of Lady Gareth, Dean of Avalon's Mage Academy, and Tactician of Avalon. I mean to say that you over generalize the demi-human populace of this region. Warring tribes have always shown a tendency to drive the more peaceful ones from the region when things escalate beyond tolerable levels for those with no stake, or little power. I wonder how many of them were merely defending themselves from your defenders."

"What?" The very idea of such a thing . . . such a concept never occurred to any present. What kind of mind lay within this woman? A dean of an institution that trained magic casters? A subordinate to the other woman at the table?

Such thoughts would be struck down as heresy by the paladin order and church alike!

"Indeed Lady Merces. I am of a similar opinion. We may not know of the numbers and types of demi-humans, but if any have even remote inklings of a culture and intellect, even they have hierarchies that they follow, regardless of how crude. Though they may not exactly adhere to human standards, children are still children and self preservation exists within everyone. It is natural law. Even other predators will change habitat when something they cannot fight against forces its way upon them."

Calca frowned slightly at the philosophy thrown at them. It was like they spoke from experience. Did that mean that a number of their cities populace was not human?

"You speak as if you have all lived through such a thing before."

They all looked to their queen and she nodded once. The cinnamon haired knight spoke again with hard eyes.

"We have Queen Bessarez. A large percentage of our population is non-human and peaceful citizens of our Queendom. I do not speak merely of elves and dwarves, but fey, hound archons, kitsune, naga, and avian. There are even those of dragon blood, like our Queen. Many of them were forced from their natural homes due to foes they could not fight on their own. For the sake of their little ones and futures, they forged alliances with us, and have returned our kindness many times over."

Calca and Delacroix both froze in their minds for a spell at the man's words. Dragon blooded? Their queen had dragon blood in her veins? Was that the reason for her scales and horns? For her tail and glowing eyes? If that was true, then it was no small wonder that other non-humans would live peaceable with humankind. Such powerful blood running through one's veins was bound to gift them with abilities beyond human reckoning, yet there were others like her?

"I beg forgiveness for the intrusion. Might I ask Your Majesty a question?"

Alicia Delacroix entered and bowed to their guests before seating herself at the table. A handful of servants entered with her carrying pitchers of fresh juice and cold water. Drinking containers were set before everyone at the table and beverages were poured. Artorias nodded to the woman, permitting her to speak.

"I would hope that your people would be willing to work with us for mutual benefit. Though my dear husband and my Queen seem to have forgotten, you are water locked. I cannot imagine that your people will fair long without land to grow crops."

Delacroix and Calca numbly nodded. They had intended to ask if they needed assistance of the sort, but talks of the wall, demi-humans, and political views had begun to cloud all that from view. Alicia had always possessed a talent for keeping him on task. It seemed this would be no different.

There was a subtle smile on the Queen of Knights' face.

"Though my people are sustained by the priesthood and their gracious assistance, the fare is bland and tasteless. My concern was that even should assistance be provided and an accord struck, that your nation's people . . . nay, it's nobility and military may oppose and decry such actions as cessation of territory to a foreign state and use it as an excuse for war. I have no desire to bring such a thing down upon the heads of my people. This was the primary reason for my patrolling forces inquiry of you Queen Bessarez. So I ask you again. Is your kingdom fractured?"

Calca bit the inside of her lip. Delacroix and his spouse gave each other looks and he discreetly shook his head at Alicia. Calca would have to handle this one by herself. They had already come to a personal agreement about what to do, but the Queen did not speak for all of Roble. While unfortunate, they would have to play by their own rules with survival at the highest priority. If the Holy Queen's decision coincided with them, then that was well and good, but if not . . .

"Sadly to say. It is indeed fractured." Calca sighed with a heavy heart. In light of such honest words despite their harshness and surprising nature, she felt that answering otherwise would be both an insult and poor step forward. She decided that such integrity and honest words were best answered with the same. "Our kingdom is separated by a bay that stretches two hundred kilometers long and forty kilometers wide and so many call this the Northern Holy Kingdom and that below the bay the Southern Holy Kingdom."

Another round of silent glances and exchanges were shared among the gathered people from Avalon.

"I assume that this bay influences these differences of opinion in your kingdom?"

Delacroix spoke up in response to the inquiry.

"Other than acting as a natural greographical barrier, it influences relatively little, but the Northern Kingdom has been far more accepting of Queen Calca's reign than the Southern Kingdom. It is predominately male organized and run. Her Majesty ascended to the throne due to her magical abilities and support from the Church. This was met with disapproval by the majority of the Southern Kingdom."

Lucretia spoke again, her eyes analyzing them all the while.

"How long ago was your ascension to the throne Your Majesty?"

"Ten years ago. When I was fifteen."

The group frowned as a whole and Artorias rubbed her chin between thumb and the knuckle of her index finger as she supported the arm's elbow with her other hand. Her glowing eyes closed in thought as she did so. The others struck similar poses as they contemplated what all of this could mean for them in the future. Nearly a decade and they were still divided yet not destroyed?

Was this the end life of a kingdom on the brink of a disastrous end? Houses divided never stood for long regardless of who or how powerful the rulers or people. History proved that time and again and even King Arthur's reign ended the same. Artorias and her friends did not have a good feeling about this Holy Roble Kingdom any more than they already did when the merfolk had spoken of them.

Unknown to the Queen of Roble or the Governor and Governess, Lucretia had cast a few spells upon herself before this meeting. They were mostly detection class and information magic. The overall strength of those they met in this gathering were pathetically weak by comparison. Calca was barely equal to lower level mid-tier casters in their army and PoP forces.

Avalon's military power lay not in the elite units, but the PoPs who were 80% of there total forces. The rest were handcrafted elites and NPCs. The majority of the PoP soldiers and knights were battle homonculi with 30 levels to each one as per the generation rules. They cost nothing to replenish for the guild and the homonculi in their army retained their combat experiences in order to learn. That detail came to light when Lancelot had been speaking with them two days ago. It meant that they could learn and adapt, making them even deadlier.

After learning that bit, the decree was unanimously decided on to allow them their own time to develop a level of individuality and personality. Even though they would be resurrected so to speak if they died in the defense of the kingdom, there was no need to make them feel like cookie cutter soldiers with nothing else to live for. Artorias and Gareth had made a point to speak with many of them to get their opinions and show that they were appreciated. It seemed to pay off so far.

They had also decided to keep the total number of their forces a secret from all foreigners. They did not know the extent of armies in this New World, so keeping their military strength veiled was agreed upon by all in the councils.

The truth was though, that they had more soldiers and knights than civilians. Avalon held a total populace of around 65,000 civilians including children. The total number of PoP forces, while technically unlimited due to the respawn, or in this case, "Auto-Res" mechanic for their army, it took each soldier a full day to come back at full strength. So if the whole army was wiped out in a single day, then the next day they would be back.

All total, their PoP forces alone numbered 150,000 troops with 20% of that number being cavalry. That was only for the fighting personnel. It did not include all the back lines support staff and healers. The Pegasus and Gryphon Knights were elite units and not counted among that number, neither were the mages of the Magic Academy.

A LOT of money had been spent on improving the levels allowed by the game to build their elite units to more resemble a proper fantasy military and the YGGDRASIL devs had loved it. Artorias and Lancelot alone had spent well over what was normal contributing to the development. Draconis and the others had done so as well. Obviously, their were a few other guilds that did similar things, like that one that had copied a great deal of Rome's Legions. Those fights had been legendary when they went to war with other guilds. Yet with coming to this New World, things were different, precautions were being taken. Troops only remained loyal when treated well and appreciated for their hard work and sacrifice. As troops themselves, it went without saying that ignoring such a thing was tantamount to suicide.

Realizing the disparaging power gap in their forces to the Queen of Roble, it wasn't a matter of could their defend themselves if things with Calca fell through the floor, but how nightmarish would such a thing be fore their attackers? Defending was always easier than assaulting in war. Yet Artorias and the others desired to avoid conflict as much as possible. They were the foreigners here in far more than just one way. Maintaining the moral high ground was important for any historians later on. They had seen the hells and punishing realities of past conflicts IRL. They were determined to learn from it and avoid repeating them as well as possible.

Otherwise everyone would suffer.

"Queen Bessarez." Artorias spoke at length. "With the kingdom as fractured as it seems, I am rather hesitant to request succor and aide at the cost of your kingdom: be it in the form of land, food stuffs, or people. Retaliation from anyone who may disagree with any arrangements we make with you will not end well for any involved. It would ruin your reputation – which by what we have heard thus far – is not the greatest in the views of your nobility and Southern half. It also would seem like we were taking advantage of you for a foothold in taking over the Northern Kingdom. With that in mind I do not in all honesty like this situation. It is how civil wars erupt."

Calca grew appalled by such a cold analysis of her nation and its people. Was this the power of a Queen who took hardline stances and had faced untold, nay, unimaginable adversity? Inwardly she wanted to deny that such a thing, that such assumptions would be made by her people, but she knew the nobility enough that the only person she trusted in the Southern Kingdom was Caspond.

Delacroix and his significant other nodded at the woman's words. It was apparent to them that this ruler had made it a point to actively rule her people and fight with her soldiers. Her eyes spoke of harsh realities and having lived and survived through it all. The heaviness in those glowing orbs of hers despite their clarity bespoke of someone who had not sacrificed in vain and still held strong to her beliefs in spite of insurmountable odds. The fact that her entourage nodded with her words with firm conviction told them that they too had fought with her, and believed her cause just enough to keep with her.

"Would there be no other way to assist your people Queen Pendragon?"

"See to your kingdom's fractured state and we shall open talks again Queen Bessarez. In the meantime, your hospitality was gracious Governor, Governess."

Artorias stood and bowed to them, her escorts mimicking her perfectly. They excused themselves and filed out of the room. Delacroix looked to see that not a drop of beverages had been touched. A sign of distrust and loss of interest. This first meeting was a disaster.

As they exited the grounds building, Gareth noticed the disappointed look on her friend's face. Nudging Mordred lightly, she gestured to their friend before walking off to the stables to retrieve their horses. The maids brought them their cloaks.

"You're disappointed by this development."

"I am indeed. It's too much of a powder keg. One match and everything goes up in flame. It isn't a matter of 'if'. It's 'when'. We've been here before. I'll be damned if we stick our noses in this and get blasted for it."

He nodded. They had their people to think of. The size of the bay alone that separated this kingdom in two hinted at naval power. Also having a ruler that was not favored by the majority was a recipe for trouble if he ever saw one. They would have to find allies elsewhere it seemed.

Gareth reappeared with their mounts in tow. The rain had lightened, but it was now dark out. He nodded to her and then whispered lightly to himself.

"[ _Shadow Guardians_ ]." The spell activated and in the shadows, he could feel the presence of his defensive guardians granted by his Dark Knight class. Four level 50 Shades would react to any attack on the party and the offenders would never know it unless they had special rogue classes or similar skills.

As they mounted up and pulled hoods over heads, two riders entered the gates. The two groups passed by each other, with the two riders looking at them with confused and curious eyes. None of them said a word as they passed by. One out of disinterest, the other in shock of the quality of barding and cloaks.

It was in this manner, that the Custodios sisters would miss the meeting of queens.

* * *

 **Rimun Steets**

* * *

She had spied them from the rooftops as the boy from the manor had guided them. Her haori and magically treated straw hat shrugged off the rain that fell in sheets earlier. Her eyes had widened when the cloaks had been removed two at a time until the lone rider remained.

The woman matched the tales of her ancestor perfectly! The elegantly swept back horns, the tail and glowing eyes! Her name was the exact same! It was impossible! How did she still live when her ancestor was long passed? The other two with her also matched word for word. Had her ancestor met with immortals?!

Alkaid Ushiwakimaru Kai followed parallel with them in the night as they rode back toward the piers. Did they intend to leave as they came? She couldn't let them go without greeting them herself. Yet something kept her wary and at a distance. The man with red and gray raiments had whispered something and then a quartet of immensely overwhelming forces of the void had made themselves known around her. She could feel it! Dark Magic! Shadow magic from the void that put her own skills to shame! Had they traded cultures and trained together? She had never felt a [ _Shadow Summon_ ] so strong in her life!

She heard the tales of his kind. A Dark Knight. A warrior who could wield negative energy and shadows like daemons and devils, yet was not one himself. Keeping one's humanity while wielding such power was a balancing act like no other, yet he was having no problems at all.

With shadow creatures so strong that she could feel the pressure they exuded unlike other beings who could not unless they were attuned to the void, she dared not approach carelessly. She had no doubts that these guardians that he had summoned would overwhelm her with their numbers. She felt confident in facing one of them if she had to, but four? Her master would scorn the audacity of such hubris.

The man who summoned them seemed to ride closer to the Queen of Knights as she heard them call her. Shortly afterward, they turned off the main roads to a more isolated area just before the docks. Something felt off. Had she been noticed? Did the shadows he summoned tell him of her presence?

It was so sudden that she nearly yelped as a figure landed heavily in front of her. Faintly registering the sound of steel being drawn, she tensed. It was the man who summoned the shadows that now physically coalesced into existence around her. Completely surrounded, she held her hands up slowly in deference.

"You have been watching us for some time now. You're not some common rabble to know my summons attack range. Who are you girl?"

The man's voice held a calm and collected air. There was no malice or anger, but curiosity if she trusted her senses well enough. Slowly, carefully, she reached up to her hat and removed the accessory from her crown. Not meeting his eyes, she bowed low.

"I was gifted the name of Alkaid Ushiwakimaru Kai. I am a direct descendant of Shin Yoshitsune Kai of clan Bakamatsu Genpei. Honorable knight of Avalon. I was told to keep eyes and ears keen to your presence by order of my esteemed ancestors. Mordred-sama, I am honored to finally meet you and yours."

The man flinched at her introduction and formality. His shadows scattered and two more figures landed around her. She didn't need her eyes to know who these two were. The rain picked back up fiercely.

"Yoshitsune Kai-san? He was pulled here?" A woman spoke in surprise. The other hummed in thought.

"If what you are saying is the truth, then we have much to discuss. More so than with Queen Calca Bessarez. What is your affiliation with this kingdom Alkaid-san?"

Glancing up, she saw the hooded and cloaked figures of Mordred, Gareth, and Artorias. Facing the queen on one knee, she spoke quietly, but concisely.

"I am currently the Adventurer's Guild Leader here in Rimun. I had been wandering far from my home to the south, far more southern than this kingdom's borders. The paladin order and church of this kingdom clash with us on occasion due to misgivings and difference of opinion. My current station is due to the sole reason that I am the strongest adventurer in the nation."

Looks were exchanged at that piece of information. The man spoke again.

"She seems honest enough. Skilled too, my Shades did not register her as a threat even though she was at the edge of the attack range. I think she has Shinobi training on top of whatever else she can do."

"Very well. Alkaid, return with us to Avalon. We have much to discuss. Gareth, change of plans. We don't want to attract the fact that we depart with an extra among us. Prepare the gate."

The three knights jumped off of the rooftop and though two of them were in armor, she barely heard them over the rainstorm. She was impressed. Following suite, she landed silently and bowed to the other four members of their group in respect as they questioned their liege briefly. Artorias reassured each of them before nodding to Gareth. The blond woman nodded in return.

"[ _Gate_ ]." The portal that opened up before them stunned her. This was a spell that was considered mythical, lost to humankind completely. All the rest of the party save Mordred entered. He then gestured to the portal before her.

"Go through. I will bring up the rear."

Swallowing audibly. She nodded and gathered her courage before stepping into the void . . . and into a grand hall unlike anything she had ever seen even from home. The pillars in the chambers were pure white and despite the rainstorm raging outside, it was peaceful here. Lush carpet covered the floor in its entirety in velvety blue and gold. The table before them was rectangular and had several chairs arranged around it. The servants did not even appear to be phased that such a portal spat out people with no warning.

Cloaks were taken and whispered greetings exchanged. They spoke to the servants like friends and family, smiles were traded, even a laugh or two from a few of them. Such powerful individuals were speaking with servants no different than equals. A light clearing of a throat behind her made her turn to see a young maiden with flax brunette hair in a maid's outfit motion to her haori and hat.

"If I may? You are a guest of the Queen." She did not know whether or not to shed her coat, though she did hand over her hat. At her hesitance, the maid smiled. "If it is the storage of your haori, we have experienced staff that will see that it is stored properly."

She was stunned, they knew what her coat was called and even had proper storage equipment for it? Even knowing that her ancestor knew and was friends with these people, it was so long ago! They had not spoken or seen each other for ages. How did they still know about her homeland's culture? Had a few of her clan's ancestors remained here in Avalon?

"My apologies. You have my thanks." She shed her haori and the young woman took it reverently.

"Please have a seat Alkaid-san. You are my guest. It may not be much, but we do have enough to provide refreshments. This is quite the surprising occasion after all."

She politely accepted as she took a seat. The chairs were quite comfortable. Masterfully crafted by an excellent carpenter if her eyes saw true. The wood was stained wonderfully and the cushions were soft and thick. Though goblets of drink were brought out to them, a familiar aroma wafted past her senses. She looked to the servant attending her and was surprised again. A clay cup with steaming drink and an earthen tea kettle was placed before her.

"I assumed you would prefer ocha. That is a drink from your homeland I assume?"

Ocha, or green tea was indeed a staple of her homeland, but she had not had any in so long! She missed the beverage she enjoyed with her family. This was proof assured that her ancestor had indeed been friends with these people. That the queen would be so considerate and even bother to remember such a trivial detail astounded her! Carefully taking up the hot cup, she sipped it slowly and the bitter drink warmed her from the rain's cold. The mellow aftertaste soothed her nerves and refreshed her mind. Then she felt it and gasped. She felt invigorated, mental fatigue shed from her being and she felt oddly limber. What was this? She bowed after she placed the cup back on its tray.

"I am honored that you would remember such a little thing about my ancestor and his traditions."

Amused chuckled came from the rest of the table.

"You have my husband to thank for such details. He was always fond of cultural exchanges and loved learning of other nations."

Husband? Alkaid's eyes widened. Did that mean that Avalon had a king as well? Tales never said anything of a king in their past. Was this a recent development? What caliber of man could win such a powerful woman's heart so? It seemed like he was well traveled, or they had many foreign envoys in the past. Perhaps he lead expeditions abroad?

"My ancestors did not mention a king to match you Your Majesty. Has this been a recent development?"

Those at the table smirked or smiled at their queen as she chuckled to herself with a smile. Alkaid noticed that the servants nodded respectfully. It was obvious that whoever this man was, he was held in high esteem.

"No it is not. I have been happily married to him long before Avalon was established. He is off in another country at the moment assisting their populace in their hour of need. Always the protector, that one."

Her smile was wistful and filled with fondness of the man she spoke of. Mordred grinned toothily as he nodded in agreement. Gareth sighed and shook her head fondly. Yet for their reactions to her words, Alkaid clenched her gut.

 _Since before the Queendom's establishment? But Avalon in the tales was standing long before my ancestor established Bakamatsu Genpei as a great clan! We have over 300 years of history . . . she's been the same ruler with this king for longer than their own nation has stood? How long have they ruled? How many wars have they fought and still stood against time itself?_

The implications of such an experienced veteran of both battle and politics was staggering. It was no small wonder that she ended talks with Calca Bessarez so quickly and decisively. They had probably seen such things time and again.

"Despite my marriage to him, do not assume Avalon has a king."

Artorias's voice surprised her. Her husband wasn't a ruler? It seemed like she saw the confusion in Alkaid's eyes and spoke further.

"He refused to take a seat of ruler ship. Rather, he took the position of a guardian to Avalon and its staunchest ally. His personal forces used to dwell in the mountains just outside our fair city. Alas, we have been separated by magic unknown to us and placed here. We still can communicate with each other, but we feel like our homes are distant now. Once he finishes assisting those he has found in need close to his demesne, he will be making efforts to return to me. I do not hold his beliefs of protection and succor against him. It is one of his strongest points."

 _Mountains? Was he some kind of monk? A hermit swordsman in charge of a monastery that allowed marriage?_

"Forgive my intrigue Your Majesty, but who is the man you call husband?"

A beaming smile radiated from the woman and Alkaid found it hard to not abase herself in the face of such a benevolent gaze.

"Draconis Brightblade is my husband's name."

Her eyes widened in stupefaction.

 _Draconis Brightblade . . . the Dragon Swordsman of Avalon?! Even knowing and seeing this here and now I never dreamed that he was real! The tales of Avalon are one thing, but a great dragon in human form who's swordsmanship matched ancestor Yoshitsune's blow for blow? Even our most faithful back home only believe him to be myth inside myth! No, there was one of our great clans that did believe it true. The clan of foreigners to our land that had integrated into our people's society._ _The Ryuu Oni_ _, the_ _S_ _piritual_ _Swordsmen and Mana Blades._

"It seems like you have heard of him. Perhaps through the stories from Yoshitsune-san?"

This time, she did stand and bow.

"Forgive me! I have heard of the tales and legends passed down for generations in my clan, but I never had put much stock into them. Your queendom's appearance and meeting you had begun to change my beliefs, but even then I did not once believe the tales of Draconis Brightblade-sama to be true."

Frowns were worn across the room. Artorias looked to her friends in concern. Gareth put a delicate hand to her chin in thought before a sudden realization came across her face. The woman turned to Alkaid.

"Please relax. I have a question for you."

Alkaid did so and curious concern could be seen on Gareth's face.

"You mentioned that Yoshitsune-san is not with you anymore?" A nod answered her and they appeared crestfallen. "How long ago was his passing?"

"Two hundred and forty years ago. Master Shin Yoshitsune Kai-sama passed in his sleep of old age at seventy-eight."

A hand went to Gareth's mouth in shock as she looked to Artorias. Mordred's frown deepened and he bit his lip. Artorias paled a slight bit. She spoke evenly, but Alkaid frowned at her words.

"Could we all have been moved not just physically, but across time itself? What of the other guilds and kingdoms? How did we manage to remain within the same era?"

Mordred shook his head, having no idea how to answer that. Gareth seemed to be saying a silent prayer. It seemed like her ancestor was beloved to them. It made her proud to know that he was so well respected and honored even now by those not even of her homeland.

Artorias sighed and seemed to sag in her chair a bit. A sad expression crossed her face and Alkaid recognized it. The grief of one who has lost family.

"Dammit Yoshitsune . . ." It was then that she could not believe her ears. Crying . . .

The Queen was crying. But why? Was her ancestor so beloved that a person of such legendary standing would weep and mourn his passing?

"Mordred, Gareth. Excuse me. Continue to speak with Alkaid."

The queen stood and exited the chambers swiftly. One of the servants followed her liege in concern. Gareth and Mordred watched her go before turning to her with sympathetic expressions.

"Forgive Artorias. There is something you should know Alkaid, and it makes you very important to our Queen with what you have informed us of."

She braced herself. She had made the queen cry with her news, yet they held no malice towards her, rather . . . endearment? She was confused as the servants were dismissed. Once they had all left, Mordred rose from his seat and drew a blade from a portal he reached into. Her eyes couldn't believe what she was seeing.

A Seven Blade Sword. A weapon of such power that any who managed to forge one were considered masters of their craft. Yet this was more sublime than anything she had witnessed in her homeland. Each tip of each blade was crested in a different gemstone. The blade was inlaid with gold and silver. The cross guard was a pale, oceanic blue and the grip was wrapped in silk so fine that it looked like a fortune was spent in it. The pommel was diamond and sapphire.

"Do you recognize this weapon?"

She shook her head negatively.

"This was gifted to Artorias by Yoshitsune long ago. It was a gift of friendship and a sign of our alliance. But to her it was something more. It was a wedding gift when she and Draconis married."

The words took the wind from her sails. Her ancestor was at their wedding? So he was really even older than seventy-eight? Several hundred?!

"To clear your confusion, Draconis and Yoshitsune knew each other long before Avalon's creation. He had told Draconis to give it to her if he was not able to show up for the wedding, which ended up not being the case as he was able to attend. It touched her to no end. For Artorias's father was not alive to present her to Draconis as was proper. Nor was her mother alive either, her adoptive brother, was though."

Mordred nodded at Gareth's words. They were having to translate their real world lives into game history and telling this was not easy for them. The very existence of Alkaid was something none of them had pondered yet. Could they have children here in this New World? Was it possible? With the woman before them, they had their answer. Yet it was at the cost of someone very dear to their close friend.

Yoshitsune's real life player was Artorias's brother in real life. Draconis would be devastated to hear that his brother-in-law was dead. They knew they would have to check up on Artorias later and send Draconis the news as soon as they could. Delaying it would be very, very bad. They spun the adoptive brother story due to the racial difference between them. Yoshitsune had chosen to be a human for the extra class levels. They never expected a development like this.

"What? You mean that . . . ?"

They nodded as one.

"Your ancestor was the adoptive brother of our queen."

* * *

 **DUN DUN DUUUUUUUN . . . . . . . . . . . . ! Revelations!**

* * *

 **Character Profile 11**

* * *

 **Esdeath**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Huntress of The Lair, Ice Maiden of Fimbulvetr

 **Residence:** The Lair, Confinement Crystal of Nazarick (Released)

 **Alignment:** Neutral-Evil (Code of Honor), (-200 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Yuki-onna = 15 lvs.; Snow Fiend = 10 lvs.; Ice Myth = 5 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Hunter = 15 lvs.; Monster Slayer = 10 lvs.; Frost Mystic = 10 lvs.; White Death = 5 lvs.; Brawler = 15 lvs.; Berserker = 10 lvs.; Juggernaut = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [Racial Levels 30/Class Levels 60]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 125

 **MP:** 60

 **Physical Attack:** 95

 **Physical Defense:** 80

 **Dexterity:** 70

 **Magical Attack:** 50

 **Magical Defense:** 50

 **Resistances:** 65

 **Special:** 100

* * *

 **No reviewer response this chapter everyone. More or less many of you had similar reviews so yeah. I agree and when the pot of stew ala Remedios's comeuppance is ready, it will be glorious. ANYWAY. Thanks to all of you reviewers out there!**

 **Nest chapter swings back Draconis's way and even Ainz gets some time now that the preliminary set ups or more or less well founded!**

 **Thoughts? Concerns? Ideas? Send them my way! Till nest time folks!**


	11. Chapter 10 Double Dragon

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official LN releases. Speaking of which, VOL. 13 in April . . . ish? Woot. Longest volume he's written by his tweet, we shall see. Shall you redeem the past few volumes with something in this one Maruyama-dono? Waiting like Igor in Persona . . .**

 **Back to Draconis everyone . . . Read and Review!**

* * *

 **Chapter 10: Double Dragon**

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom Capital Castle**

* * *

Draconis stood at a balcony overlooking the fields to the east as he sipped on a glass of juice. The night had come and gone with little incident after the conclusion of the duel between him and Cerabrate. He had exchanged a few words with Draudillon before retiring for the evening. Breakfast had been a simple thing and he took the time to take in the crisp morning air.

Yet despite this, he could not feel good about it. He had gotten the tragic news from Chronos via a message from Gareth. His real world brother-in-law, Yoshitsune had passed away over two hundred years ago in this New World after establishing a clan and having a family. What did that mean for others in his Guild Bakamatsu Genpei?

When he had tried to get in touch with Artorias, she had been weeping. Yet despite of her sadness, she insisted that he remain there and keep helping those in need.

" _I have our friends here. I am not alone and just knowing that you are still being you. Helping those in need is enough to keep me going. We can mourn him together later. Our people and those of that Dragon Kingdom need our help now. I love you."_

Her words and strength of will never stopped impressing him. They knew each other well enough to know when one of them was on the edge and needed the other. If she couldn't take it anymore, she would call him without fail. He respected and loved her too much to go against that. He knew Gareth and Mordred and Lancelot would care for her. The Arcology War hadn't broken them or their bonds, this would not either. It would only strengthen them further.

Yet he still felt the loss. She was right, they would mourn him when they were together again, but now he felt like paying silent respects for the morning and stared off at the rising sun.

He was dressed in mourning robes of Japan. Pure white with little embellishments. A katana that he had been gifted when Yoshitsune had joined the game and met up with them lay before him. It was nothing terribly impressive. Only High Tier with few enchantments, but the sentimental value was great.

A presence walked up to him from behind and took a knee. He did not need to turn to know that it was Hazuki. She had been created as a being who hailed from the region that Bakamatsu Genpei had, but was not a part of their society. Being an Tenko, she was keenly attuned to her master's state of being and those around her. News that their master's brother-in-law had passed long ago had shocked them all. She could feel the immense sadness within him and knew as a being of power, that grief could kill a person just as easily has swords and arrows could.

She did not doubt that he would be able to move on, but things were too hectic now. They could only do so much to help this kingdom they had found themselves new neighbors of with their numbers. If she could help him find solace and peace sooner, she would.

"My lord. Might I speak with you a moment?"

"Hazuki. I don't mind. Have a seat."

"Thank you my lord."

As she took a seat opposite of him, she gazed at the katana. It was elegantly crafted and a beauty to look at, yet her simpler katana in appearance held far greater power. It was a weapon not to be wielded in actual combat, but displayed as a work of art.

"Is Queen Artorias alright? I know this must be a sudden blow for her."

He sighed and nodded slowly.

"She is grieving as a family member should. I offered to return to her side and comfort her, but she insisted I remain here and help those in need. That she has a many times descendant niece is some comfort to her. I have a feeling once she is over her brother's passing, she'll be doting on her relatives a bit."

He chuckled with a wry smile at the thought.

"She won't go overboard, but she won't ignore them either. This Alkaid woman is quite accomplished in this world if what Gareth told Chronos is true. I wonder what happened to the rest of his guild?"

"Perhaps one of them still remains with us in this New World? Certainly some of them had to be non human."

He nodded at that. There were a few grotesques in Bakumatsu Genpei, but did their longevity account for these hundreds of years that separated their appearances in this world? He didn't know. He also began to wonder what kind of woman his brother had managed to win the heart of. He had always sworn that he would remain single for his life, yet now he had a lineage he could have lorded over them if he was still with them.

He laughed at that idea. It made Hazuki smile politely at his improving mood.

"Good grief Yoshitsune. You go and have kids and descendants before Artorias and me. That's a frightful revelation. I'd never hear the end of it if he was still around."

Draconis looked to Hazuki and nodded to her.

"I know what you just did. Making me think of other things and better times to be happy about remembering his life. Thank you, I feel a bit better."

She bowed to him and smiled, glad to be of help to her lord.

"You're welcome, but I only do this as any true vassal would."

"Hazuki, you are more than just a vassal or subordinate. Have I not told you all before? You are like family to me."

A faint blush crossed her face, but she smiled and nodded.

"I am honored and blessed to no end by such a compliment. Then it is only natural to help those close to us." When he nodded, she continued. "I know that you yet grieve, but as your wife has said, we have people here who need our help now. Yoshitsune-sama would wish for you to help those in need as well."

A smirk played across his face before he started chuckling, then laughing out loud. He threw his hands up in defeat.

"Okay, alright! You have me! I'm amazed by your determination and motivation. You are right. We have people in desperate need here and now. He is too much like his sister in that regard. Time to get to work. I can pay tribute when this is finished."

Standing after he took up the katana in hand and placed it back into his inventory. Changing back into the armor he wore the previous day, he took a deep breath and nodded to Hazuki. The two left the room provided to him by Draudillon Oriculus and proceeded to walk down the halls of the castle. Servants and what few soldiers stationed around the castle either stepped out of his way and bowed, or stared in reverence. He quietly acknowledged them with nods and waves as he passed. Hazuki . . . who had not been seen until now, was stared at.

She wore her usual armor and attire. The katana at her side rested peacefully in its saya. They contrasted sharply. His knight's armor and raiment with her japanese styled regalia, yet both of them appeared immaculate to those passing them. Even though one or two of the servants in the halls managed to rummage up enough courage to ask if they could be of any assistance finding their way around, the two politely refused.

Draconis knew where he was going. He was letting his sense of smell guide him. It was mid morning so he doubted that Draudillon would take breakfast so late. As they approached the throne room where her scent was currently the strongest, hey could hear the voices on the other side of the guarded doors despite their massive thickness.

"I understand your concerns lords and ladies, but Draconis does not strike me as the kind of individual that would take advantage of his position for greed."

It was Draudillon speaking with her nobility? Draconis motioned for the guards to halt when they motioned to announce his presence. If they could not hear what was being said, then all the better. He did not like the idea of eavesdropping, but this information would help him better understand the situation with her higher ups and more influential groups without having to directly play the talking game with them.

Hazuki seemed to have the same idea as he noticed her stance had become more alert and she had closed her eyes to further concentrate on the words being spoken.

* * *

 **Throne Room Interior**

* * *

Draudillon frowned as she continued to speak with a gathering of her remaining nobility and what few merchants had managed to remain in business. They spoke in concern to the display Draconis had made yesterday against Cerabrate. The one sided victory and mercy at one of Crystal Tear's own request had traveled swiftly throughout the whole of the city. The common folk spoke feverishly about the crimson haired knight who repulsed and reproached The Fierce Flash with ease. Nobles who had actually witnessed the spectacle hailed him as an ominous arrival. The church saw hope and salvation. Adventurers who had taken the news back to the guild headquarters respected the man's prowess at the very least.

"Your Majesty, where did he come from? Someone who is that powerful doesn't just help for no reason. He has to have some aim."

The man who spoke was an older aristocrat in the nobility who had made his gains through careful planning and taking advantage of changes in the economic sphere. He was always a hard bargainer and it made him believe that no man could be trusted a hundred percent.

"Lord Karlyle, I do not believe that to be the case. The man possesses knowledge as well as martial prowess. He is also well versed in magic and social etiquette. A man so well versed in so many things would stand little to demand recompense in terms of monetary compensation of our nation."

She did not have to emphasize how they also could not afford to with their nation in such dire straights. Lord Karlyle did not back down.

"He could demand other things that are not monetarily related! Unreasonable treaties or a position in the court!"

A man younger than Karlyle, but also of the nobility stepped forward with a scowl marring handsome features chiseled by time in the fields of battle. His dark black hair was a rarity in the nation, but he was not of the far southern kingdoms. He was the least fancily dressed as he had been defending his lands from invading beastmen. He was one of the few who could fight them with his forces as he fought with wit and strategy rather than head on clashes.

"And what would he do that for? What would he gain by such a play? Our queen has told us that he holds a considerable position in a queendom far stronger than us. He has offered us aid against a menace of no small threat. We have not even met the man yet and you judge and doubt him. I bore witness to the duel between the Fierce Flash and this Lord Brightblade. Cerabrate was disparaging the man as you are now before being handled like a rabid dog. Yet he spared the adamantite at the behest of his own teammate. Their scout, the Lady Deidre."

Karlyle bristled at the younger noble.

"Still your tongue Whitepeak! The only reason you hold any of your lands is because you pay tribute to those infernal wyvern riders from the north! Not to mention that lizard riding whore of a chieftain."

Other nobles frowned and nodded in agreement. House Whitepeak was situated close to the eastern and northern borders of the kingdom, yet had held onto their lands due to assistance rendered from wyvern rider clansmen from the northern mountain ranges. Many called their arrangement treason, yet they consistently sent aid and portions of harvests out to the neighboring villages and provinces. The beastmen had not been able to take over and invade their lands due to the arrangements held with the wyvern rider chieftain. A woman who was rumored to also be the man's lover.

It was cause for much headache, yet Draudillon saw fit to raise him from lower nobility, to Baron despite his age. He was only twenty-two. Far past coming of age, yet young in the political realms, he thought with level head and pragmatic views due to the active role he took in the defense of his lands and its people. It chaffed with the nobility present. Whitepreak gnashed his teeth viciously in response.

"You dare?! Lady Lucia has ever agreed that the threat the beastmen invaders pose is something that is a concern for all surrounding areas. She has worked hard to build good report with our people and has created a vital bridge for our societies. I will not have you speak ill of someone you refuse to work with Lord Karlyle."

"That is ENOUGH!" Draudillon roared in frustration. The mass of people quieted immediately. They were all still adjusting to seeing her adult form and began to remember that she held dragon blood in her veins.

She calmed herself a moment before glaring at Karlyle.

"Lord Karlyle, you will remain silent in concern to Baron Whitepeak's lands, people, and alliance with the wyvern riders of the north. His holdings still stand and what little aid that does make it to its destination is graciously appreciated."

She gave the young noble a serene nod that he bowed in response to.

"Baron Whitepeak, you do your lands and its people a great service. Asking for aid is difficult, I know. Continue to protect our people."

"Your Majesty."

"Lord Brightblade will only be a threat to our people if you make him one Lord Karlyle." Her eyes bore into his. "Hope and pray you do not. I have spoken with him at length and he is unfathomably powerful. I would rather have him as a friend and ally than antagonize him and make him an enemy."

The group murmured among themselves at her firm stance on the matter. No one was so deluded that a strong ally would be scoffed at, but the costs were their concern. A guard at the door entered and cleared his throat.

"Your Majesty. Lord Brightblade wishes to be granted an audience."

She nodded firmly and the nobles swallowed. The guardsman went back and bowed briefly before opening the doors fully to reveal the man that was the subject of all their discussions.

The man entered and all those who had not witnessed the duel of Cerabrate and Draconis either stared, gawked, or flinched as he approached the throne. His steps were measured and sure. His posture was immaculate, something that many present worked hard to attain, yet it seemed natural to him like breathing. His stature was above all of them. It was like looking to a giant of a man. He stood easily several inches above the tallest present in their number. An aura rested over him that bespoke confidence and there was no way one could miss the regal bearing.

Despite his incredible armor and raiments, he made so little sound that it was hard to believe he was really there. The woman who entered just behind and to the left of him made almost no noise at all.

He stopped short of the throne by several paces and bowed respectfully. The woman accompanying him did the same, though hers held a different form than his.

"Queen Draudillon Oriculus, I would ask permission from you to walk among the city and see for myself what needs be done to restore and reinforce your capital to act as a staging point to drive out your invaders and protect your people. With your permission I would also like to deploy a number of my forces to reinforce yours and provide training to those who wish to defend themselves and their loved ones."

Before Draudillon could grant him permission, Karlyle pointed a finger at him. Sweat soaked his brow and veins seemed to bulge under his skin. The noble was in no way overweight, but he was heavier set than some of the others present.

"Why should she allow such a thing? You claim to want to help us, but I see what you are up to! You would go out to see the costs it would require of you so you can demand compensation later."

The woman beside him stepped between them and glared, an aura of malevolence engulfed everyone in the chambers and the pressure was stifling. Golden amber eyes seared the hearts of those looking upon her. An imposed image of some kind of lithe canine creature with nine tails fanned out around her frame shook their souls. Her voice was cold as ice and razor sharp.

"Do not project actions you would take onto my lord you pompous human. Despite my lord's power and wisdom, he deeply respects humankind and admires the good as much as he loathes the evils your kin are capable of. You would bite the hand that feeds you given the opportunity. Those of you present for my lord's duel against that pedophile would have heard his speech. You can't even respect your own ruler. Be silent."

Baron Whitepeak had indeed heard Draconis's speech before the duel the man had with Cerabrate. He agreed to an extent, but what could he have gone through to harbor such a radical view? This woman had called them out as 'humans' so did that mean that these two were not? Were the Fierce Flash's accusations of impersonating a dragon actually his arrogance denying the truth that this man before them was in truth, not human, but dragon?

 _Perhaps this man . . . dragon . . . made a pact with Her Majesty's great grandsire, the Brightness Dragon Lord? It would make sense. The Brightness Dragon Lord did have a fondness for other races unlike other Dragon Lords. Perhaps they made a pact due to similar views?_

His thoughts were cut short as Draconis sighed and shook his head.

"Enough of that Hazuki. Calm yourself. You cannot force change upon people when they shut their hearts and minds. Do not waste the effort."

"My lord. I apologize." She turned and bowed deeply to him. He smiled and nodded in acceptance.

"Apology accepted. Now, to move on. Your Majesty?"

Draudillon nodded.

"I do appreciate your asking my permission before setting out. It is granted. I thank you for your assistance."

He bowed again and whistled once. It was a short, sharp note that made a few of them wince. A dark portal opened and Samael stepped out of the void. His presence made everyone step back a few feet.

He stood just as tall as Draconis. His gray hair framed an angular face. Scarlet breastplate mail reinforced by scale mail was rimmed in gold. He wore no weapons, but held a set of scrolls in clawed gauntlets. His cloak flowed freely as he stepped through and bowed to his master.

"You called my Lord?"

"Indeed." He motioned toward Draudillon. "This is Queen Draudillon Oriculus. I would like you to assist her in awakening and growing into her dragon blood as I have with you."

The man bowed to the queen. His voice was deeper than Draconis's and a bit rough, but fully understandable.

"Your Majesty. It is a honor to meet you. I will work my hardest to ensure that you better understand and control the power that flows in your veins. I understand that you are not as combative as we are, but I believe that your desire to help your people will more than make up for that."

Those gathered were shocked at his words. Draconis nodded firmly to Draudillon when she looked to him for confirmation.

"Much of the training he will be providing is lessons in awakening the potential of your heritage. With its awakening you could do something along the lines of this."

Draconis closed his eyes for a moment before a burst of power let loose a shock wave that passed through everyone in the chamber. The wave pushed a few back a couple of paces, but many of them took an additional step or two back. The crimson haired knight before them had changed, transformed!

Crimson hair remained, but an elaborate helm-like horn had wrapped and protruded from his forehead. It wrapped back and down around his ears. They protruded like the wings of a raven with scales of glittering gold mixed with a smattering of crimson ruby like gemstones. A single lightning bolt shaped horn extended from just above and centered between his brows a fair foot and a half.

His eyes shined and glowed prismatic colors that swirled like a whirlpool as they shifted like a rainbow. He smiled and fangs protruded where incisors would be. Spikes of dragon scale and bone stuck out from his elbows, yet the armor and raiment had morphed with his form to prevent damage and seemed to flow around his new form like it was in tune with his physiology.

It appeared like he had gained a second cloak until it unfurled into a pair of wings with a wingspan that took up their whole field of vision. His wings were nothing like a dragon's! Instead of leathery stretched skin supported by muscular humerus and other wing digits, they were astounded by rays of luminous screens of gold light.

A long tail flicked back and forth behind him with scales to match his horns and wings. It was finned at the very end and was almost three and a half feet long. It was thinner than expected, but appeared to be quite limber.

"Whether or not you are able to perhaps attain a full form, an awakened form like this is possible. I dare not fully transform for it would not end well for your throne room."

His voice fairly resonated through their bones rather than their ears as he spoke. His bearing had become unbearable, a few fell to a knee. Draudillon gulped as she nodded. This was incredible to behold. He was willing to help her achieve such a thing? Even if she never became as strong as this man before her, just attaining an "awakened" state as he called it would be such an amazing boon!

If this was a partial transformation, then what was his full form like? She shuddered to imagine it. The man folded his wings back and his power faded, his normal human form re-established itself and the nobility sweat at the implications.

Draconis glanced in their direction.

"I trust this settles questions to my heritage at least? I would rather not have to repeatedly clear the air of that matter."

Quick and frenzied nods went around the whole group with no exceptions. Baron Whitepeak stepped forward and bowed.

"Lord Brightblade. If I might ask a question of you, Dragon Lord."

A curious brow lifted slightly on his face.

"Feel free Baron Whitepeak."

The man wondered for a moment if Draconis had overheard their arguing earlier for he hadn't introduced himself.

 _Of course he heard! We were not quiet about it and he just proved his dragon blooded heritage. What's a set of heavy doors to a dragon's senses?!_

"The Lady Lucia of the wyvern riders has shown a similar power before." The words shocked those present and a few let loose indignant cries. "Her followers claimed that she was blessed, but we believed it to be elder magic, not something blood related."

"Oh? That's intriguing. Does this Lady Lucia have a full name, or banner which she rallies?"

"Her full name is Lucia Ignis Thundercry of Phantasmagoria."

Draconis nodded sagely. Inwardly though, he was sending a [ _Message_ ] to Chronos. Panic Mode was a good way to describe his current feelings . . .

" _Yes my Lord?"_

" _We have a situation . . . Set up as many wards as you can and do_ NOT _skimp on the countermeasures before looking for Lucia Ignis Thundercry of Phantasmagoria."_

Chronos choked on the other end of the message, but acknowledged them and performed his preparations. After a few tense moments, he choked again and his voice wavered for a moment.

" _My lord?"_

Draconis didn't have to guess what happened and sighed internally. He knew already, but answered.

" _She found you?"_

" _Apologies . . ."_

As he was in the process of apologizing, Draconis felt a powerful aura above and behind him and immediately shifted stance and drew his strongest blade, the weapon crackled with power and virulent purple lightning even as it chilled the air and snow began to form in the air. His shield appeared on his left arm and Hazuki and Samael immediately back off. They had only ever seen him draw these two weapons once and it had been in the immediate defense of The Lair from someone who had pierced its defenses to the the innermost chambers.

The air sizzled and crackled with black lightning and white fire as a figured hurtled through the cataclysm of energy. A long spear of overwhelming energy shot straight at Draconis. His swing met the weapon and thunderous echoes clashed through the chamber. Deafened by the exchange, the onlookers screamed and covered eyes or gaped and stared in mute terror and awe at the powers clashing.

Draconis followed through with his swing and yet the spear barely stopped its assault and shot forward again, this time a figure landed with a flying kick into the perpendicular handle that rested just before the spearhead began up the haft. Spear tip collided with shield point this time as Draconis punched with the shield's pointed tip. Already working on his next maneuver without pause, he came up with a rising slash as he retracted his punching attack. The sword clanged against the pommel of the spear haft as the figure kick flipped her weapon as she somersaulted backward, the weapon spinning clockwise in a deadly rising strike that matched his own.

His attack sent the weapon skyward and back as the figure landed, nonplussed and caught her weapon behind her back like it was a part of her. Twirling the weapon flashily behind her back before planting it blade up to her left. She put a hand on her hip as she smirked at him.

Heterochrome blue and orange met prismatic as Draconis planted his blade in the floor tip first. Ice and snow radiated across the floor from the blade's point of impact and violet lightning radiated through the formed ice and snow, stopping short of everyone else. The woman's spear spread smoldering embers and charred the floor ash white like charcoal as black lighting skittered along the embers and clashed with his weapon's violet bolts.

He had a similar smirk, though he chuckled at the chances of this happening. She spoke first, her voice resonated like his did when he was displaying his half form just moments before.

"Draconis Brightblade, imagine my surprise finding you arrived here . . . good to see you've not rusted since our last meeting."

Her two toned eyes glowed at him as soft lavender hair wisped around her face. A dragon head fashioned headpiece adorned her crown. Her armor was sleek and stylized to mimic that of dragon scales. Spines adorned the shoulders and blades rested on the gauntlets she wore. Each fingertip was clawed and underneath the armor and arm guards one could see skin tight scale mail. She wore a battle skirt knee length and a underlying surcoat possessed long tails that draped to her ankles. Her greaves were fashioned like talons at the toes and had inch high heels reinforced to stab if she desired it.

The whole ensemble was dark night blue and violet with traces of crimson peaking out here and there. The spear she wielded was jet black and gold with glowing crimson runes along the entirety of the haft. The pommel was fixed with a sharp dagger like end that could be used to reverse stab and slash if she so desired it.

He answered in kind, his own voice emanating power.

"Lucia Ignis Thundercry. The last time we met, it was during the Dragonsong War. We were fighting against Nidhogg: The Wrathful Fallen of the First Brood."

Those listening shivered. Dragonsong War? A war of dragon kin? First Brood? What were they speaking of? Draudillon could feel the sheer power and value of the gear that Lucia Thundercry wore. She was like Draconis when he first met the man. Wreathed in overwhelming magic and magical items! Was this the upheaval of power that the man had forewarned her about? Were the gods preparing some kind of cataclysmic event that required being of such power? She wanted answers for her people's sake, but dared not interrupt these to titans of power.

"Indeed it was chosen of Bahamut and Rototosker."

"Humph. I could say the same of you chosen of Tiamat and Hraesvalgr. Lucia, the Lucent Dragoon of Phantasmagoria."

He smiled as she did. It was best to play at her mind game for a bit as he let Samael and Hazuki move to protect those in the room. They would be a great help, but the people in the room to precedence. The supreme tension in the chamber was broken by the Baron.

"Lady Lucia, what is the meaning of this?! You know Lord Brightblade?"

Her intensity nearly cut completely off as she looked to the man with the expression of a surprised chipmunk.

"Oh? Baron Whitepeak? What are you doing here?"

Draconis sighed internally. _Dodged a bullet there. God's she's still over the top intense!_

"What am I . . . ?" Baron Whitepeak was stunned at the question. "This is Her Majesty's throne room! What are you thinking?!"

She appeared sheepish and bowed toward Draudillon. The queen was flabbergasted at such power suddenly fizzling out like a sail without wind.

"My deepest apologies Your Majesty. Draconis and I are acquaintances and it has been quite a long time since we have talked, much less sparred. I became overeager."

 _Understatement of the century?_ Draconis deadpanned in his mind with sarcasm at full bore.

Draudillon numbly nodded her acceptance of the apology before sobering a bit and growling in aggravation at both of them.

"What is your relation with Lord Brightblade? Was such a violent spectacle truly necessary for a greeting if you knew each other?"

Lucia looked to Draconis for help and the man face palmed. It was so strange seeing such a noble man act in such a way. He put on a stern face and growled at the woman named Lucia.

"Don't look to me for this offense! Her question is valid. Gods you are such a battle maniac!"

"Sorry . . . You're right Draconis." She straightened and bowed formally. The weapon disappeared into some kind of void, much like what Draconis had done. His own weapons disappeared as well, which set everyone at ease . . . though the effects on the floor still remained.

"I am Lucia Ignis Thundercry . . . Dragon Ascendant of Phantasmagoria, a realm known of old as one of the strongest legions in the world. Ancient times, there was not a one who did not know of us." Her proud voice matched her smile, but faded into melancholy. "Though time is the unbeatable enemy of all no matter how powerful and knowledgeable one becomes. Time claimed the majority of us, and now I am all that remains."

Draudillon and the rest swallowed at the admission of dragon blood like the man beside her that she had sneak attacked to a stand off.

Draconis winced internally, having learned about his brother's death so long ago in this world. He would have to question Lucia about when she and her guild had been transported to the New World as well. Though he would have to be tactful, she was rather sensitive about losing friends.

 _Phantasmagoria; a guild that ranked number 4 in all of YGGDRASIL from its second year running to the end of the servers. Held the max number of players at 100 members with 95% of them being level 100. Outrageously powerful at everything they participated in. Hardcore players . . . the whole lot of them. They took advantage of the war between rank 1_ Trinity _and Rank 3_ 2ch Alliance _and put the hurt on both. She was the one who informed me of the requirements to attain Dragon Ascendant and claimed that I was her "Eternal Rival" as a fellow Dragon Race player and Dragon Ascendant herself. They tried to recruit me a few years ago . . . Gods, this is going to hurt . . ._

"That being set aside for a moment Lucia. Did your legion know of Lord Draconis's homeland of Avalon?"

She looked to Draconis and smiled.

"I do. Avalon is quite powerful and yet peaceful. Whenever the wars raged in the past, they were like a peacekeeping force for those caught up in the fighting who wanted nothing of it. We hold them in high regard. Draconis is an ally of ours."

"Are they as powerful as the two of you?"

Lucia glanced at Draconis before speaking.

"Is Lancelot Du Lac with you?"

He lifted a brow in intrigue. He knew why she was asking. Lancelot was one of the few players of YGGDRASIL who could take on almost anyone and win. He wasn't a World Champion for nothing.

"The Knight of the Lake is here. Yes."

She whistled and nodded respectfully.

"Lancelot of Avalon is a man of peerless skill and power and can give Draconis and I a run for our money. He is a human paragon."

That admission from Lucia and confirming nod from Draconis made them all flinch. Dragon's acknowledged a human as just as powerful or more so than they were?

"Regardless, I have obviously interrupted something quite important . . . Draconis, it was good to see you again. We will have to talk later."

He held up a hand to forestall her departure. Turning to Draudillon, he motioned to Samael.

"Samael, carry out your duties as a mentor to the queen. Should anything happen, let me know immediately. Hazuki, assist the commander if you would, I will send Tod to you in order to provide additional assistance. The scrolls he carries contain the instructions I made last night."

The two NPCs bowed and he nodded at their response.

"Lucia Thundercry, we should talk, I have a feeling meeting you again like this is portents of something far greater that meets the eye."

She squinted at him with concern, and nodded in agreement.

"Please wait a moment Sir Draconis."

Draudillon's voice drew their attention.

"Would their be a method to contact you directly if needs be. I trust in your subordinates abilities, but should they be occupied?"

The two dragons looked to each other and nodded. Draconis reached into a black void before him and drew forth a pearl like earring.

A [ _Link Pearl_ ]. An artifact item that was useless at higher tiers with [ _Message_ ], but useful for private communications not wanted in public chats. He motioned Hazuki over and she took the item respectfully and brought it to the Dark Scale Dragon Lord. As she presented it to her, he spoke.

"You make a valid point Your Majesty. This is a [ _Link Pearl_ ]. An artifact that allows for direct and private communication to the one it is given to. You need not fear divinations and spies listening in. It will connect you directly to me. No one will be able to interfere or spy on your words. Merely think them and they will reach me."

She focused on the item and could feel its power. _Is this true?_

" _Indeed it is Queen Oriculus."_

His answer in her mind was surprising and she glanced down at the item in shock. How potent! She looked to him and nodded firmly.

"My thanks for such an item. I will make sure to treat it with appropriate care."

"indeed. If there is nothing else?"

She shook her head negatively. The two being bowed and departed rather humanly through the doors of the throne room. As the throne room doors closed, a man with black hair streaked with white and gray materialized at the doors. Those present tensed until Hazuki spoke.

"Schwarzer Tod. You received our Lord's message?"

"Indeed I did Lady Hazuki." He approached them all and stopped an appropriate distance from the throne and bowed to Draudillon. "Queen Draudillon Oriculus of the Dragon Kingdom. I am Schwarzer Tod, Archmage of The Lair."

Draudillon nodded and allowed him to rise. Her thoughts braced her for new revelations from the subordinates of Draconis.

 _Introducing himself as Archmage means that he is a magic caster of great power. If Dragonis admitted to me that he could cast magic beyond mythical realms, then what of this man? He bears no weapons of martial standard, yet that could well be a ruse after seeing his lord draw forth weapons from the very aether itself._

"Well met Archmage Tod. Out of personal curiosity, are you like your peers? Something more than human?"

A soft smile met her inquiry.

"No Your Majesty. I am quite human."

Shock rippled through those present.

"I see. Commander Samael, may we see what assistance Sir Draconis has graciously provided us within the scroll you carry?"

Samael nodded and opened the one with blue ribbon adorning the corners. Last night Draconis had drafted these orders and instructions. The details were very specific and after reviewing them with Chronos and Tod, he had memorized them in its entirety. But for the sake of redundancy, he read from the scroll.

"By order and advice from my Lord Draconis Brightblade. The Queen Draudillon Oriculus of the Dragon Kingdom shall henceforth be rendered aide and succor in her nation's time of need in the following capacities:

1) The aide and succor to the weak and infirm. Elderly and child in need of sustenance and shelter shall receive it with no requirement to be compensated in any form or fashion.

2) In light of the need for shelter and sustenance, construction of homes and housing to provide such aide will be conducted by the builders of The Lair and the venerable Master Craftsmen Biggs and Wedge.

3) Those of able body and mind who desire to defend their loved ones and homes shall receive martial or magical tutelage and training ONLY upon voluntary request. No person shall be forced into service against their will.

4) In the defense of the capital and its outlying villages and cities still under the control of the kingdom, soldiers will be provided in the number of 50 in possession of martial and magical prowess of the standard of The Lair and Avalon. This number shall not decrease below the stated number, but shall increase dependent upon the size and nature of the city or village.

5) These defenders will provide their own sustenance and shelter and will not demand, seize, or con any citizen of the Dragon Kingdom into providing said amenities unless gifted of their own volition. Violation of this point shall be met with severe reprimand appropriate to the offense.

6) Liberation of any city or town or village under beastman possession shall be done in the name of the Dragon Kingdom and shall not fall under the possession of The Lair, Avalon, or Draconis Brightblade himself. Survivors rescued shall be given all due aide and healing and succor for terrors experienced under thrall of the invading forces.

7) Enemies captured and not slain during the course of this alliance will be dealt with on a situational basis. Punishment of the wicked will not be a blanket event and as noted in the defense of Tildeus, there are select few beastmen of note that may yet learn and better themselves from mere mindless savages. Such individuals shall be given due consideration for rehabilitation and teaching for better relations in the post conflict."

Cries of outrage and indignation filled the room as he read the seventh point.

"What utter rubbish!"

"Balderdash and a blight on the beastmen! We were not given mercy so why should we grant such?"

Draudillon frowned, but not at the cries of her nobles. She could clearly see the long term benefit of such actions and what Draconis was trying to accomplish, yet she knew of a few of the leadership of the Beastmen Kingdom's clans. They would never change unless subjected to powers so great that it would annihilate them to a man. She understood that by utterly destroying them, they would be sinking to the very level of the beastmen, but they were not about to subject them to being eaten! Despite her fury in the fact that her people were not being killed, but eaten . . .! She sighed and pinched her nose.

"Silence. I understand your Lord's intention with that point, but the leadership of the Beastmen Kingdom will not succumb to anything but raw power."

Many nodded and even Samael his peers did as well.

"We understand you and your people's sentiments. However, our Lord wishes to avoid outright genocide Your Majesty. He fought a war that engulfed twenty nations and caused multiple civilization ending losses. He wishes to avoid such tragedies if possible."

She nodded for she could see and feel the sincerity and truth in their eyes and presences. They were not lying. Her blood surged at such a thought. Twenty nations at war with each other at the same time in the same region?

"Very well. Though I would ask that we have a say in such decision making."

"We will let our Lord know."

She nodded and motioned for Samael to continue.

* * *

 **Castle Spire Rooftop**

* * *

"So . . . that's how long you've been here?"

Draconis muttered as he grimaced. Lucia sat against the spear she had planted in the roof. Her legs were pulled up to her chest in a rare moment of vulnerability. She nodded mutely to him. He took a seat and leaned back on his hands beside her.

"Two hundred and forty years . . . you were there during the final moments of the servers after everyone else logged out save the guild leader and then found yourselves in the mountains to the north. Most all of your NPCs and the Guild Leader himself died of old age and the NPCs children, and their children's children continued to serve you as the sole survivor of Phantasmagoria . . . I can't imagine it. I'm sorry."

She had cried as she told him. He had let her. He then realized he would go through the same thing with his friends who played human characters and non long lived races unless they found a magical or legendary solution. It also proved a frightening theory of his true.

They were here to stay.

"The guild's base is still functioning after all this time?"

"It is. Well hidden behind our Guild Weapon. No one has ever found it in all this time. The wyvern rider tribes found me when I ventured out one day and since then I've been coming and going to their lands so I don't go mad with solitude."

"What of the NPCs?"

"The numbers reduced drastically, but the PoPs still operate. There are around forty NPCs, but most of them are descendants and not any where near as powerful as their progenitors. The strongest one is level 50. He's a commander class. The only NPC left from the originals is Tsubasa, and she's in stasis."

He looked at her with a curious expression. Lucia smiled.

"My personal NPC. A Machine Spirit Race. Combat Songstress with a full 100 levels. She's a powerful support member."

He nodded and smiled.

"I see. I can't imagine the life you've lived since the server shut down, but knowing that there are others that have come before is both telling and gives me a better understanding of our situation."

"What of you Draconis? Who came with you?"

He sighed and looked out on the horizon.

"I just found out that my brother-in-law was brought into this New World around the same time as you. His descendants just got in touch with my wife and her friends in Avalon. Though we are apparently separated by a large amount."

She understood what that implied. She didn't know which was worse, living longer than your friends and watching them pass you by . . . or finding out your family . . . your real family died long ago and seeing someone who is ages younger than you tell you that your are they great, great, great, great grand-aunt.

"Sorry to hear about your brother."

"Thank you."

They shared another silent moment.

"I have a proposal for you Draconis."

The man glanced at her clearly intrigued.

"I have lived for a long time here and learned quite a lot in that time. The Baharuth Empire to the north occasionally sends help, though it isn't much considering they fight an annual war with the kingdom of Re-Estize. The young emperor is actually very intelligent and pragmatic. I could go and try to convince him to send a bit more assistance to take some strain off of your forces."

"I'm sensing a condition coming on." he tensed.

"You have to come with me. I will send my forces, well the PoPs to aid your own here in the Dragon Kingdom. I can promise you that they'll be fine for a decent stint of time."

He gave the idea some thought. With his own PoPs combined with the forces from Phantasmagoria, the kingdom would be extraordinarily protected for the most part. The NPCs were nigh unbeatable as a team and he did have logistical and command roles filled by NPCs in his retinue. If anything did occur they couldn't handle, he had informed them to implicitly call him without hesitation.

He had given orders to Samael and Hazuki to see to strengthening the kingdom's defenses and fighting power. Samael was told to help Draudillon get a better handle on her bloodline's powers. It was something the dragon blooded warrior had taken an interest in.

Draconis had been mindful to tell them not to expect leaps and bounds in power levels. And they understood despite their shock in the difference in power they possessed. He trusted his followers to right.

"Very well. I'll go inform my forces, but why me?"

Aggravation covered her face and she fairly sneered at him.

"He's a bit too smart . . . overthinks things at times from what I've heard. Being from the Wyvern Rider region makes me kind of sketchy to his advisors and that mage of his."

"Who is this mage?"

She sighed and shrugged with her hands to the air.

"Fluder Paradyne. The most powerful mage known in the human kingdoms of the area. He can cast up to Tier IV, but I suspect that he can push himself a bit to gain Tier V. Not that it means anything to you or me as Dragon Ascendants. Oh! One piece of advise."

Her sudden seriousness made him put up his guard. He had known Lucia for two years during their time in YGGDRASIL. Whenever she got like this, she was deader than a doornail serious.

"Be wary of the Slane Theocracy. They have World Items."

"What. The. Hell?" His whole body went cold and a shiver ran through his spine. He knew to be cautious just from what he had learned of the Slane Theocracy from Aarik of Tildeus, but now he was well and truly troubled. "Do you know which ones? How did they acquire such things?"

"They were founded by a player with a guild that had them. As to which ones . . . I only know one of them and that was because they nearly got me with it." She shuddered at the memory. It was the one time she had fully dragon formed and incinerated the woman using it to ash without hesitating. She had garnered their ire and grudge in addition to the title of Lightning Inferno Dragon Lord. "Downfall of Castle and Country."

His tension was telling and she grimly nodded.

"I have another idea, but let's take things one at a time. The Dragon Kingdom does need true help, and I'm all for this. So, as a fellow dragon and foreigner in this world despite my time in it so far, do we have an alliance?"

His gaze steeled and he sighed.

"In light of what you have told me, I feel it necessary to inform you that Avalon and I were not the only ones transported. In thanks for informing me about the World Item threat, one of your opponents was transported here as well."

She frowned.

"Who?"

"I want your word you won't try something foolish."

She nodded slowly. Phantasmagoria had many enemies during their existence. Not many of them could actually do anything devastating to them, but it never hurt to be prepared. She respected Draconis enough and knew that he had friends all over the game.

"Ainz Ooal Gown."

She froze on the spot. The PK guild. Number 9 in their prime. She had fought them an several occasions. They were here?! She could only imagine the devastation if they got out of hand. Then she also remembered that not everyone in a guild was transported and that at the time of the last days of the game, their rank had dropped to much lower rankings.

"Who in their number?"

"Only the leader Momonga."

She sighed and shook her head.

"Only the leader? Momonga struck me as a player that was really good at memorization and clerical things and competent in PvP, but not something ridiculous like World Disaster Ulbert or World Champion Touch Me."

At that, Draconis laughed. It was genuine and his laughter caused her to join in. They both continued till tears formed. After a moment trying to catch his breath, he wiped a tear from the corner of his eye.

"That may be true, but he still has his own unique rare class, and before you ask: no, I'm not telling. Touch Me and Momonga are good friends despite disagreements. My concern is how the rest of the world responds to him and Nazarick and his own response in kind. He's a pretty dedicated and laid back person who panics easy but means well. I just visited ever now and then."

"I see. If you're vouching for him, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt, but be warned, racial traits affected my friends in strange ways. As an undead I can only imagine how that would affect his mindset. Perhaps you should visit more often?"

He nodded. He hadn't considered that point. He was an Overlord Class Elder Lich. That couldn't be good in the long run for his mental health could it? Maybe becoming like an anchor to his humanity would be necessary? He honestly hadn't even considered it.

Lucia could see his gears working and patted him on the shoulder.

"If you're really friends Draconis, I'd like to get to know him a bit more. Despite my time here, I still remember all those I played with during the heydays. Now let's get working! Time waits for no one."

He sighed and smiled.

"You're right Lucia. Good to see you again. Let's get started. I'll get in touch with everyone and we'll get to work."

The two shook hands and proceeded to leave the roof and head back down. Armed with this knew knowledge and a fellow dragon player, he intended to affect change where he could. The threat the Slane Theocracy posed still worried him, but now he knew something more concrete about what he was up against.

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Chronos sighed and slumped against his chair. At least Lucia of Phantasmagoria was reasonable and an ally for now. He feared a confrontation between the two at the capital of the Dragon Kingdom when she had found him via her protection spells, but his fears had been allayed by their talking.

He felt a bit bad and guilty for spying, but it was better to be prepared than taking things for granted. Speaking of which, he gazed back at the information he had garnered regarding said Slane Theocracy. He had found, with some disturbing images, that they did indeed possess the World Item Downfall of Castle and Country, but the owner was recently killed by Shalltear Bloodfallen of all people. Though she was affected by the World Item, he noticed that it wasn't full control.

His issue was that the captain of their group had blocked her attack. As knocked back as he had been, such a thing during her Blood Frenzy should not have been possible for standards of power in this world about humankind from everything they had learned thus far. That made the Slane Theocracy dangerous in his eyes. He was sure that his Lord would agree given the apprehension that he had shown when they had learned of the Theocracy.

His high class divination had pierced their defenses and rendered his own existence a mirage, utterly untraceable. It was utilizing his magics that he encountered it . . . no . . . her . . . Zesshi Zetsumei,

"A tragic lady. Yet the higher ups of the Theocracy do not necessarily share the propaganda they spread . . . what a lot of hypocrites. Then again, they do seem willing to learn . . . No, I will consult Lord Draconis on such matters, though I daresay he would be interested to hear of Lady Zetsumei . . . Like a doll on the edge of the fence . . . which way will she fall? Good or Evil? Light or Dark? Or will she walk the line as we do?" A small smile crossed his lips.

"Chronos? What are you looking at? Who is she?"

Kurome popped into existence over his shoulder. He laughed as she looked.

"That is a descendant of a player, a Godkin as they call them in this world. Half-elven at that. Though I feel like this elven nation is lead by a despot and tyrant. Nothing like Lady Luserina. Are you and Akame ready for dinner?"

She nodded vigorously. He laughed again as he ruffled her hair playfully. As they left the room, he locked down all his divinations and information. He felt a prick at his defenses and lashed back, the presence shrieked and was driven off. He had not killed the offender, but whoever it was would certainly back off for a while. Actually, he had a good idea who it was, but he didn't hold it against her, which is why he didn't kill her.

After all, why kill what could be useful later?

* * *

 **Slane Theocracy**

* * *

Thousand Eyes Astrologer shrieked as her attempt to divine was shut down even before it began. It was like when she found that Ainz Ooal Gown magic caster who had devastated the Sunlight Scripture's angel forces.

No, this one was different, this one didn't even allow her to see or even complete the spells! She had felt a pain like a needle being screwed into her skull. She was sure that if she hadn't canceled her casting that she would have died.

Pulling her black hair riddle with eyes across the brim over her face, she blushed a bit. Someone so powerful in divination that even she couldn't force her way through? What kind of being had pierced the veil of spells guarding their nation's secrets? Whoever it was, she was both curious and terrified.

Despite the pain she had felt, their was also an admonishing message that felt more like something a mother or father would do to a child getting caught stealing sweets before dinner. She still remembered the message.

" _Now now . . . none of that my dear child. Time will reveal all, but not a moment before hand. Time marches ever onward. We'll meet eventually, Thousand Eyes Astrologer. All of the Slane Theocracy will meet us eventually. Take care little one."_

"What have I witnessed?" She wondered aloud as she picked herself up from the floor. Her long unruly blue hair swished about. She couldn't tell the Cardinals that such an entity had learned of Zesshi's existence and past, much less the Six Great God's treasures! Yet, she had glimpsed, or been allowed to glimpse an image, a figure before being shunned.

An angel. The gods were looking down on them still! That would satisfy the cardinals for now. She left the write her latest report before dinner.

* * *

 **Character Profile 12**

* * *

 **Lucia Ignis Thundercry**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Officer of Phantasmagoria, Lucent Dragoon, Lightning Inferno Dragon Lord

 **Residence:** Headquarters of Phantasmagoria: All the World's Stage, Wyvern Rider Territories

 **Alignment:** Lawful-Neutral (+100 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Dragon = 15 lvs.; Dragon Lord = 10 lvs.; Ancient Wyrm = 5 lvs.; Dragon Ascendant = 5 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Fighter = 10 lvs.; Lancer = 15 lvs.; Monk = 10 lvs.; Martial Lord = 10 lvs.; Internal Chi Master = 5 lvs.; External Chi Master = 5 lvs.; Dragoon = 5 lvs.; Sky Dancer = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [35 Racial Levels/65 Class Levels]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 88/120

 **MP:** 30/55

 **Physical Attack:** 95/105

 **Physical Defense:** 80/100

 **Dexterity:** 80/50

 **Magical Attack:** 20/45

 **Magical Defense:** 70/80

 **Resistances:** 90/90

 **Special:** 120/120

 **Like Draconis, she has a true form, thus her dual numbers. Yet the Slane Theocracy has already seen it once, and as such, she has been labeled a threat and named a Dragon Lord title as no one has ever seen a dragon in a humanoid form. Most of the New World doesn't realize this either as the Slane Theocracy has kept that encounter with her ultra tight lipped.**

 **An officer in Phantasmagoria, she is lonely having lived longer than all her friends. This revelation shakes Draconis a bit and he resolves to be a friend to her. She's fought Ainz Ooal Gown during their heyday in YGGDRASIL and feels a bit negative about their whole "evil" PK mindset, though she knows that not all of them were like that.**

 **She was in charge of the forum that provided Draconis with the information to become a Dragon Ascendant, and as longer player of the Dragon Race, was considered like a mentor and friend to him as fellow dragons. She is the self proclaimed "Eternal Rival" of Draconis to his annoyance and exhaustion. She is fully aware of his married status and is good friends with Artorias as well, though she hasn't seen them in obviously a LONG time.**

 **Her personal NPC . . . well you'll find out in future chapters. Lol.**

* * *

 **Reviews . . . Reviews . . . aaaaaaaaand reviews!**

* * *

 **PervySageChuck:** What?! *grabs adamantite baseball bat. Get out of the plot files! No, no, no! Bad Chuck. Gross! *punts. Ugh, where'd I put the pervert sealing spell . . . . ? Hrrrmmmm . . . . All things said, good to see you're still around.

 **Korraganitar the NightShadow:** Wow! Nice to see one of my Code Geass readers getting into another one of my stories! Thanks for the review! I know it's been an age since I updated it, but I fell off kind of hard if you didn't notice. Life does that. Plus I lost inspiration several times when I came back to it. Heres to season 3 of Code Geass reviving my inspiration for it. In the meantime, I did see what you were talking about, yeesh, I'll need to fix that. Thanks for the call out and thanks for keeping with me!

 **Everyone Else:** You all were pretty responsive about the bombshell I dropped last chapter. Good to see that it got you to you guys. I love characters that get loved by their readers. Thanks for the support to all of you!

Will Samael awaken Draudillon's dragon blood? What of Chronos? Read on to find out!


	12. Chapter 11: Inner Voice

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Please support the official LN release!**

 **Nothing particular of note to comment on this time around before the chapter. Other than the issues the site is having with logging in, reviewing, and updating things . . . grrr . . .**

* * *

 **Chapter 11: Inner Voice**

* * *

Lucia flew ahead of Draconis as she showed him the way back to her region in the Wyvern Rider territories as they sought out aide for the Dragon Kingdom. Unlike him, she was in her true form. She glided and rushed through the skies with carefree ease and grace. Despite her massive frame and enormous wings, she held herself with a luxurious air.

He had to admit, it was impressive to watch. Her wings were similar to his, but a dark violet and red. In her true form, she had four wings. Catching up to her snout and eye area, he waved to her. A massive eye fixed on him. The iris narrowed and widened as it refocused on him.

"What is it Draconis?"

Her voice resonated through him and he shivered a bit. It was different when talking in true form. It was more potent than projecting their power in human form as well.

"You seem to have acclimated to your true form rather well."

There was a giant toothy, fang filled grin in response. Her long, sinnowy form rippled in laughter. She tucked her wings in for a moment and performed an aerial roll before leveling out again. Her wings stretched back out. The way that Lucia performed the actions so naturally impressed and even mystified him a little bit.

He was using the [ _Fly_ ] spell, but she was flying naturally. Points on his back itched for reasons he was beginning to figure out why. It was his dragon blood.

It unnerved him.

"Your scent changed." Her sudden announcement shook him from his brooding as the flew. "Something is on your mind."

Sighing, he nodded, knowing her large eye was on him.

"You say that you've been here for more than two centuries now, how has your dragon blood affected you? How would it affect my wife?"

She shifted and to his strange amusement, flew upside down under him as she stared long and hard into his eyes. It was so strange seeing a dragon act in such a way. Like a psychologist. She tapped her jaw with a claw as she thought about his question.

"I don't sweat a lot of the day to day details anymore, if rarely. Sleep lasts a lot longer than normal. I went to sleep and didn't wake up for six months. I go digging for gold and rare minerals for food every now and then . . ."

The part about sleep worried him. Would he go to rest one night and not wake up until far after his friends died? How many moments with his family would he miss during one of these "naps"?

A growling voice echoed in the back of his head.

" _ **You aren't human anymore. Why worry about it? Why fight it?"**_

His heart froze for a moment and he glanced over his shoulder in shock and concern. Lucia's eyes narrowed as she observed her friend. She had an idea of what just happened, but unless he shared it with her, it wasn't her place to intercede.

He looked back to her with a heavy frown on his face. Yet it was not one of confusion or fright, more of anxiety and worry. The voice returned, and it sounded strangely amused.

" _ **You mind is sharper than most. But you do have things to take care of and promises to keep. I will respect that and we will talk again later, Emissary."**_

He grit his teeth as the impossibly deep and ominous voice receded from his mind. He knew that Lucia had not heard it, yet by the look in her eyes and the scent she now gave off, she knew something. Shaking his head hard to rid himself of the feeling, he took a deep breath.

"Are we close to the Baharuth Empire or are we going to have to take a break?"

"We're taking a stop in Wyvern Rider Territory for meal and then heading out."

He nodded as she reverted to her human form in a flash of dark light. Her wings remained as per Awakened Form. Lucia motioned for him to do the same as she slightly altered their course.

He focused on his power and he entered his Awakened Form. Golden rays of light encompassed his wings as he flew with her toward their destination. Drawing up parallel with her, he motioned with a nod of his head.

"You mentioned the Wyvern Riders, but not All The World's Stage. Any particular reason?"

"The NPCs there would probably attack you. Not that they'd do much to you, but still. Rather not have to sort all that out with them just yet. What about you? Are your NPCs really okay with just us heading out?"

He remembered their reactions to his news. Chronos and Samael were against it, but Cecilia had talked them down. Tod had also seen the prudence in doing so, especially when word of World Items got out. Chronos had been informed about all the World Items that were noted while YGGDRASIL was still up and running. He had extensive knowledge and while it wasn't perfect, it was far better than not knowing about them being her in the New World. The NPCs had developed a contingency should any of them appear.

If the Slane Theocracy show their faces in the Dragon Kingdom, they were all to go to ground and avoid contact entirely. The Lair had also been reinforced and prepared to go into lock down in case of a World Item appearance as a precaution.

"We've discussed it and other plans of action if necessary. I trust them to handle themselves well enough."

"Far enough. Ah, there it is."

Off in the distance was a large encampment. Several fires burned and he could smell food cooking. Though it did smell good, it didn't entice him as much as he thought it would considering he had missed out on breakfast. His eyes could see wyverns and men and women alike loitering around the area. They didn't seem to be panicking or up in arms as he had thought they would be at the sight of their approach. Their wings were things not normal for people to witness.

Lucia gave him a quick look that seemed to say, "Follow my lead."

The two performed a wing over maneuver and descended on the cliff side camp. Many of the people present watched them land and a handful approached them with smiles. Their dress and armor when one could see a set reminded him of old documentaries about the Native Americans crossed with the furs and cloaks of Scandinavia. It was multicolored, rustic, yet elegant and filled with tradition and pride all wrapped into one.

"Dragon Matron Lucia! You honor us with this visit!"

"Elder Lacan. Good to see you still with the living. I see you got over that illness a few weeks past." She clapped him on the back in friendly gestures. "I knew you were too stubborn!"

The two laughed heartily as the man's contingent eyed Draconis with more interest than caution. The elderly man was well weathered by wind and age, yet he appeared quite fit and hardy. His graying hair was kept swept back and held in a generous braid that draped over a shoulder like a badge of honor. A wyvern scale vest held hunting knives styled like a bowie. A throwing hatchet rested in a well worn leather sheath. A beaded necklace lined his neck and he could see old scars on his arms and collar.

Lucia smiled and gestured grandly at Draconis. He bowed as she introduced him.

"This is Draconis Brightblade. A peer of mine from long ago. I recently found him helping the Dragon Kingdom against the beastmen invasion."

The man smiled and held a hand out. The two men shook and Draconis could feel the strength in his grip. A man of field and stone. The callouses spoke of countless years of hard work.

"Another great one like Matron Lucia. An honor to meet an elder of dragon blood."

It surprised him and a sly smile appeared on the old man's face.

"Do not find it too surprising that we of Wyvern Rider Territories are more attuned and informed of Dragons and their traditions and customs. When Matron Lucia appeared before our ancestors and taught us to read, write, learn, and pass down our traditions through more than just word, we owed her a great debt."

She laughed and grinned with fangs showing. As she had not released her awakened form, he didn't either. Yet these people did not fear them. They looked at them with respect and a bit of awe in the younger ones walking by. How much did Lucia teach these people?

"They tried to catch me at first . . . bolas's and nets! I actually found it amusing." He gave her a look of disbelief. A true form as large as theirs using just bolas and nets? Made of what? Vines?

"After I managed to talk to a few of their ancestors and their more opened minded ones began to really pick up all the lessons, it was like they had a revolution in culture. They live in harmony with the wyverns here. The wild ones who want to interact are treated like family and the ones that don't are left alone. Sometimes a hunt goes on for any wyvern that is either causing problems or is especially promising, but the younglings are strictly off limits. The same goes for females with young."

He noticed on the way to this location that there actually was land that was fit for agriculture scattered around the mountains and that farms had been erected. Large areas were cleared for wyverns and their riders to land and gather harvests. It was actually quite an impressive organization. Nothing like what he thought of when clans and tribes of wyvern riders came to mind. He could see open air lessons being taught by adults and other elders to children with scrolls and parchments and crude ink quills made of wyvern fangs and talons, or insectoid stingers. An unbridled smile spread across his face.

It was a happy sight.

"I can see that Lucia. It's very impressive. Elder Lacan, this is quite the sight for my eyes. Many are not as fortunate."

An expression of understanding and concern crossed his well tanned features.

"Hrm! So we've been told as Matron Lucia rendered aide to our southern neighbors. The Clan Whitepeak patron showed remarkable and respectable resolve in beseeching us for aid. But come, it's time for midday meal."

The man lead them toward an incredibly large, smoothed stone slab set up on smaller slabs like a grand feasting table. Beyond it was a blazing fire that held a huge sheet of Heat Stone. The mineral was easily heated to incredible temperatures, yet never fissured or wore out because of it. Such a fantastic conductor made for a great cooking top.

Looking around at the comers and goers of the area, he noted that while many were human, many were also not. There were catfolk and avian like humanoids as well. There were even kobolds and a number of goblins. They were dressed like the others in leathers and scales. Trading and haggling was being carried out with few incidents.

As he watched the surrounding area with great interest, he began to notice trends and patterns. Though many patterns and symbols woven into clothing were similar, each had a color preference and marking unique to the color. Yellows, bright like corn fresh harvested with brown markings and hazel feathers marking one clan. Dark blues with black marked another. There were deep green and browns with shells of some kind of anthropoid. Another few wore bright red and black. Another wore a salmon pink with gold. Myriad and numerous, yet organized in a strange, cultural manner. Races also varied greatly under each color. Not a single color held merely one race.

"It's like a giant merchant bizarre."

"Oh? Noticed it did you?"

He nodded to Lucia as their food arrived. He could smell savory scents from under the giant dome to keep food hot. The server, a catgirl who smiled at him with a fanged grin removed the dome with a proud declaration and he found himself impressed. Skewered meats and a whole fish. Never mind the size of it . . . with smoked fruits and grilled vegetables he'd never seen. A lobster like crustacean sat in its crimson shell with a broth. It was then that another smell attracted his attention even more. A gemstone the size of his fist gleamed at the center of some kind of sweet smelling pudding/custard.

He raised a brow as he looked to Lucia for an explanation. She smirked.

"They know that I like gems as dessert. Since you give off the same aura, he's assuming the same of you. We are on the positive end of the dragon lines so gems are our "sin food" if you want to call it that."

"Hah! Like dark chocolate and other sweets then? Makes since I guess." he sobered a bit. "We really aren't the same anymore are we?"

A hard slap on his back jolted him and he glared at her. She held a deadly serious gleam to her eyes.

"No . . . no we're not, but hold high to what you feel. At least we don't crave humans."

He shuddered at the thought. The human part of him was repulsed by the thought. Even if it wasn't technically cannibalism if he did so, sentient life in general wasn't the same as plants and animal consumption . . . Sighing hard, he shook himself and picked up a skewer and bit into the meat.

They ate quickly and without conversation. The Elder, Lacan noted the differences in the two dragons among them. Lucia ate with less reserve than Draconis did. The man minded human mannerisms more than she did. Though both of them ate everything at an equal pace, he was far less messy.

At least until the ale started going . . .

Both of them finished their fourth mugs of ale at the same time, Lucia calling him out on his manners. By that point, he had half glared at her before calling a drinking challenge. She had been pestering him all throughout the meal and he decided to contest it in a manner that didn't involve them fighting it out. It had drawn a bit of a crowd. The mugs were less tankards and more like mini kegs.

The number to drink first was four and the two dragons slammed their empty containers down on the stone table simultaneously. Everyone hooted and hollered as they looked back and forth at each other before glaring.

"Draw?" Draconis asked with a smirk. He could see Lucia slosh a little. He knew a slight bit about her avatar's build and skill set from their past interactions. She pushed for maximum DPS and Evasion. A glass cannon build that relied heavily on evasive moves and perfect parrying to avoid getting damaged.

"You . . . . grrr . . . damned soloist." She knew that she couldn't beat him in the ale chugging contest. Alcohol, no matter what type or culture, was a poison. It inebriated its consumers, dulled senses after too much and no matter how you turned the picture, was negatively affecting you after you passed your limit.

As a solo player, Draconis had taken many measures to turn his build into the perfect "All Arounder". Made to cover every angle he could, poisons were something you always worried about no matter what your level was. He had his resistance up to being immune. So no matter how much he drank, he would never get buzzed, much less drunk.

"Cheater . . ."

"You're the one who agreed to it. I'm surprised you didn't remember that part of me?" he replied cheekily. He was grinning like a cat that got the cream. Pay back was sweet.

"Fine . . . A draw. You feel better now?"

"I do actually . . . thanks for this." She smiled despite her taking a hit to her pride. She knew the dark thoughts that passed through his mind over the past few hours. She had gone through them herself at one point. If she could help, then she would, even if it meant a hit to her pride every now and then.

The attendant laughed at them and their crowd crowed at the show. It wasn't often the Matron Lucia brought someone she knew. Even rarer when the new guy was apparently also one of her own. Draonis sighed and smiled. It felt like he was back in the barracks again with the guys. Looking to the man who brought them the eight gallons of ale, he shook his head.

"How much for all the ale?"

"That'll normally be 750 gold, but seeing as yer friends with the Matron, 400 gold."

He nodded and checked his inventory mentally before remembering something vital. His coins were not of this New World. Lucia smirked.

"Don't worry about the coins here Draconis. They all trade well enough."

Nodding, he drew out a small pouch.

"You take platinum coins?"

"Sure, it all spends well enough. Easier to keep track of too."

Taking out the pouch from his belt pack, he knew that there was enough platinum coins. Handing the coins off, the man tossed the pouch in the air and caught it again with a smile.

"Thank ya kindly. Have a great day sir. You too ma'am."

The crowds dispersed as the spectacle came to a close. Lucia and Draconis patted down their clothes and looked to the sky. Elder Lacan smiled.

"Will you both be departing now? Can you not stay for a while?"

"Apologies Lacan, but we have a timetable to sustain."

"I see. Then a word of caution. That Dragon Lord is roaming the skies in search of you Matron Lucia."

The two frowned at that tidbit. When Draconis looked to her for an explanation all that he got from her was a cut off motion and a frown. She turned back to the elder.

"My thanks for the warning Elder. I think I'll be okay with my friend with me. If something happens we'll keep it away from settlements and hunting grounds."

The two bid farewell and took to the air. Lucia once again took the lead, but did not revert to her True Dragon Form. Assuming it had something to do with Lacan's warning about a Dragon Lord looking for her, he came up beside her. The usual carefree expression was filled with serious alertness.

"What is this Dragon Lord who's looking for you?"

"They call him a Dragon Lord, but according to what I've learned, True Dragon Lords were lost during the war against the Eight Greed Kings. Players like us who appeared more than four hundred years ago. They slew a majority of them but turned on each other and killed each other in some kind of guild fallout. Their old base is still around, but guarded by a dragon known as Platinum Dragon Lord."

"Over four hundred years ago? Good gods, how long ago did it spread us out? What about anyone yet to appear?"

She looked to him and shrugged.

"I really can't say. Your appearance and Artorias's in addition to Ainz Ooal Gown is going to mark another massive upheaval in the world. Not every player sent here was level 100 like us. But if you haven't already guessed, many denizens of this world aren't very strong by comparison to us."

The wind whistled as they flew. He nodded his understanding as she continued.

"I haven't shown my True Form to other dragons with only one exception. Heavenly Dragon Lord."

"Why's that? Is that the one looking for you?"

She shook her head negatively.

"No, Heavenly Dragon Lord never lands. Rather, he shouldn't as he's the size of an island, and not a small one. People could live on him if he had an ecosystem on him."

Draconis was honestly stunned. A dragon the size of a floating island? How large of an island? He didn't dare imagine the size of its breath weapon . . . he shuddered at the thought. He suddenly found himself glancing upward in concern. Her laughter surprised him.

"Don't worry about Heavenly Dragon Lord. He prefers to just fly around and watch things. Even though we could probably take him due to his massive size, the people down on the ground for leagues would be permanently affected by the impact of his body if he died. I actually asked him about that, if he died. Want to know what he told me?"

He simply nodded.

"I'll just become a literal island in the oceans before passing away. He planned on landing in the ocean and being an island . . . nobody would ever know it."

Good grief.

"So, who's the one looking for you?"

Her facial expression soured considerably.

"He calls himself Furious Flame Dragon Lord, but he's hardly past the mature adult stage. He just smells me as a female dragon and assumes that because I don't reveal my True Form that I'm weak and doing this to hide my nature. He's been trying for twenty years now. I'm getting really annoyed."

He deadpanned and gave her a tired look.

"So . . . why haven't you trounced the whelp?"

"Because his daddy dearest is an actual Dragon Lord on the Argland Council State's Council along with Platinum Dragon Lord and three others."

That struck a chord with him. So it was political? A nation ruled by Dragon Lords . . .

"That could definitely be a problem. Have you tried talking with them about it?"

Lucia crossed her arms across her chest and flipped over on her back as she flew ahead of him a few feet to give him an annoyed look with her blue and orange eyes. Her lavender tresses blew about in all kinds of directions.

"Their council doesn't handle players very well after the events with the Eight Greed Kings. But can you really blame them? Certain powers in the dragon circles know of our existence as players. Do you know what this world considers a international emergency?"

She gave him a wry look.

"A Soul Eater."

"Really? The Level 30 to 50 undead unit? I get that it has . . . self buff on kill . . . oh . . . OH! Wow, that says a lot."

Soul Eaters were undead units between the mid thirties to level fifty that had long range AoEs and self buff on kills that made facing them a nightmare at low level and a pain when you were mid to high tier. After you hit level 70 and on, they were just another undead mob unless you faced hordes of them.

As a Holy Knight and Dragon at a total of level 100, he didn't really worry too much about them at all anymore. But against the being of this world and what he had learned about magic tiering from Draudillon, that was a startling revelation.

"We really are walking calamities."

She nodded and gave him a measured look.

"You see why I haven't revealed my True Form to other dragons here?"

"Makes sense when you compare it that way."

As the two continued their flight, they could see the end of the mountain ranges in the distance. It was then that a roar met their ears. Lucia groaned and Draconis looked back to see a dark red dragon flying rapidly toward them. He could smell sulfur and embers.

"Is that him?"

Her nod of resignation told him yes.

"Why me?" Shaking his head, he shrugged.

Looking at the dragon approaching them, he focused on him and donned his special gear set.

 _World Dragon's Emissary Raiment of Fending_. A set of gear exclusive to his rare class Emissary of the World Dragon. As it materialized upon him, Lucia perked up and took notice. She'd never seen such a set of gear. Her dragon blood hummed as she gazed on him.

It recognized his power and told her that he was every bit her equal in power. The feeling of being eyed by the World Dragon Midgardsomer came over her and she shivered. She could feel that fighting him would not end well for either of them and she could feel some kind of favor being cast upon him. Casting an information spell his direction, she gawked at what appeared in her mind.

 _Dragon Friend, Dragon Killer, Dragon Slayer, Suppress Frightful Presence. Expand, Lengthen, Widen, Empower, and Maximize Meta-Breath Weapon. Greater Sphere of Influence: Dragons, Exalted Diplomacy: Dragons, Exalted Bane: Dragons. Empowered Spell Resistance vs Dragons V! Dragon Summoner VI._

The list continued through several other buffs and talents he had active. All of it was from his armor and did not include his weapons, racial skills and traits, or other classes.

"God damned devs. What the hell did they give you?"

"I know right?" He smirked at her while placing himself between her and the oncoming dragon.

With all those effects active, she didn't doubt for a moment that this dragon was dead if he tried to do anything to them. She remembered the ending of the Dragonsong War and how the World Dragon Midgardsomer had appeared and proclaimed that one player had shown character beyond doubt and earned his blessing, but she didn't think that it had been him!

 _This should be interesting._

He hovered in place, no weapons drawn. The dragon seemed to pick up speed. As it came within fifty feet, he opened his mouth.

"That's close enough." he hadn't empowered his voice, but Lucia could feel an wholly difference presence in its timbre. The dragon came to a slow halt and hovered, powerful wings kept it aloft. Tendrils of flame left its jaws.

His size was impressive, if anything. A wingspan stretching several dozen feet in both directions. His body was at least ten yards long and that didn't include his tail. He was about the size of a single story house of respectable size and dimensions.

"And who are you to speak to me in such a way?"

"Draconis Brightblade. Your advances upon dragoness Lucia are not welcome nor appreciated. I believe she has stated this to you on more than one occasion."

"So she finds another dragon who hides in a weak human form? You are wasting your time puny one."

The signs of a breath weapon were apparent but Draconis frowned at the dragon's impatience. A breath weapon attack was normally a good standard opening move for dragon combat, but given his nature and resistances, if it was fire based it wouldn't do a lick of damage to him.

"Before you think of unleashing a breath weapon on me, I advise you stand down. I would rather not have to explain to your father on the Argland Council why I had to discipline a son of his. Much less invoke my position as an arbiter of our kin on you."

A roar of indignation echoed through the skies and made them both frown further. Lucia grit her teeth. She knew that he had taken a younger female dragon as a mate against her will. Part of her wanted to go and save her, but due to the position that the self proclaimed Dragon Lord had as a son of an actual Dragon Lord . . . it wasn't feasible for her without dropping undue attention on her and her home.

She also knew that Furious Flame Dragon Lord was plotting something, but didn't know exactly what it was.

"You?! An arbiter of us? Dragon kind?! Deluded is what your mind is. My flames are unmatched and I will show you no mercy. Now stand aside. I have words to pick with the delicate flower behind you."

Draconis frowned and bristled at the dismissal. A deeper part of him roiled at the implied insult at Lucia as well. Was it because she was a friend? A fellow dragon player? No. Something deeper ran against his morals and thoughts at this dragon before him. The dark voice reared its head again.

" _ **This one is old enough to know better and yet he ignores the auras and scent of your age and superior power. Those of our kin who cannot tell when they are outclassed and out powered should be taught a severe lesson. Dragon Lord? Bah! Son of a Dragon Lord?! Hah! Show him the error in making light of an emissary of the Progenitor of our race!"**_

"You dare?" the aura and power in his voice made Lucia double take at him and back away a bit. "You DARE?!"

The furious indignation in Draconis's voice echoed loud and clear across the skies. Birds in the air around them fled. The skies trembled with the power building up around him. Furious Flame Dragon Lord stared at the man before him as his dragon eyes widened in disbelief. His blood froze in its veins. The fires he had readied to incinerate this mortal died out.

Prismatic eyes flared brightly and Draconis unleashed his Awakened Form. The wings of light and horns and scales and tail took on glimmering and shining hues of gold so bright that Lucia had to cover her eyes. Then it hit them both. The gravity that was his Dragon Presence.

Normally, a dragon had [ _Frightful Presence_ ] rendering anyone in a set radius sphere of the dragon scared, unnerved, or outright terrified. As one aged and advanced in age category, it grew more potent and sometimes increased in range. Dragon Ascendants lost this and instead gained [ _Awesome Aura_ ] which didn't frighten, but cowed and awed those around them into submission or inspired allies like no banner and rallying cry could hope to achieve.

This was something different entirely! It wasn't [ _Awesome Aura_ ] or [ _Frightful Presence_ ]. This went beyond that and into something she had only felt when a First Brood Dragon appeared.

[ _Aura of Supremacy_ ]. An Exalted Class skill that she could only assume he had attained with his rare class. The specifics were unknown to her, but as a dragon player of YGGDRASIL, and the head of the private information forums about dragon racial jobs and abilities, she did know about what the First Brood Dragons had. At least a little bit. The ability allowed them to assert their dominance over all other classes of dragons and all age categories. Due to their being the direct descendants of the First Sire himself, they were almost considered Divine Beings.

The weight of his presence brought a look of horror to the dragon's eyes. It seemed like he was beginning to realize just what . . . not who . . . but what he had angered and disrespected.

"Are your senses so dulled with lust that you cannot make sense of who and what is superior your insolent claims!? Try again and right your mistake!"

His voice boomed and resonated through both listeners. Lucia actually trembled. She knew that it took a lot to make Draconis lose all patience, but this was different . . . warped. Yet she could do little at the moment. Even her own blood told her that interrupting him now would not end well, even for her.

Furious Flame Dragon Lord cowed completely. This aura was even more powerful than his father's! When he looked back at this mortal, the wings of light and golden horns, tail, and scales were unlike anything he had seen. His senses told him that he was like a wyrmling before an ancient wyrm.

"Forgive me! Mercy elder!" he cried piteously. "You are right! I was dulled by lust! Forgive me!"

"My forgiveness is not what you should be asking for, but hers." Lucia gulped.

"Lady Lucia. I am sorry for causing you such harassment! I beg forgiveness!"

Fore claws covered his snout as he spoke to her full of contrition. It was jarring for her. Was this the power Draconis could bring to bear against all dragon kind? Did it have a limit? She saw an opportunity out of this incident and decided to jump on it.

"Under one condition."

"Name it!"

"You release the young female you took against her will back to her own."

He balked, but Draconis glared fiercely and he ducked his head.

"I will, I swear it."

Draconis narrowed his gaze. His voice still held power.

"We have no guarantee of that. What collateral do you have to ensure that you do not renege on your word?"

The dragon whimpered. It was a pathetic sight. Lucia actually felt a bit bad now. Moving over to her friend, she tentatively placed a hand on his shoulder. He calmly looked to her and she shook her head.

"That is enough Draconis. You're becoming the bully."

That seemed to spark something at the back of his mind and he bit his lip hard. The aura dimmed and lessened. Though his Awakened Form remained, he seemed less outraged and more in control of himself. She could feel a subtle, but powerful presence recede from his being. A pit formed in her gut.

"Lucia? Damnit . . . I lost it there."

"You alright? You're good now?"

Shaking his head vigorously, he gripped his forehead in a hand. Looking back at the still contrite dragon before them, he spoke again. His voice no longer held the angered edge and power, but still carried weight.

"You will remember our scents and bring the young female to us in the Baharuth Empire unharmed. You will apologize to her as well. Whether or not she forgives you is another matter entirely."

He bowed with his head vigorously. A wave of Draconis's hand made him flinch. A portal opened and a young woman flew out of it. Her wings were of light like his, but bright azure blue. She wielded a pair of long objects. They were not swords, though she had a pair of them on her hips. Her helm was hawk-like. Her armor was incredible and all her gear reeked of potent worth and magic.

"Luserina will follow you to ensure your safety and that you are kept honest. Fulfill this and we shall put this behind us. Agreed?"

Nodding again, he now knew without a doubt that this was a mercy by comparison to what could have happened. He began to fly away, this woman in winged armor kept up with him, yet flew just out of melee reach. Now that he was better using his senses as berated by this Draconis, he could feel the great power from him, Lucia, and this Luserina.

 _How did I not sense her power before now? Was I truly so blinded by lust?! Who is this dragon in a human guise?! I'm doomed. If father finds out about this I'm done for!_

As he flew away, Lucia looked to Draconis in concern.

"Draconis, what the hells was that?"

Draconis shook his head and frowned heavily.

"I don't know. A voice in my head grew outraged, and I along with it. It feels primordial if I had to give it a description. Like when Midgardsomer spoke to me. Like Bahamut as well."

She frowned and placed a hand on his shoulder as she made him look up at her with the other. Giving him a hard look in his eyes with hers, she knew now what was happening.

"We need to talk before going any further with this quest."

"I'm listening."

"Let's get to Baharuth first. I have a friend there who can help us."

She began flying to the north again and at a faster pace. He matched her and frowned internally. What was that surge of rage and indignation that took such fierce root in him? The voice felt like an old acquaintance forgotten, yet at the same time, like a foreigner that he should be wary of.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

* * *

Arche Eeb Rile Furt walked down the streets of the capital toward the meeting place with their family's debt collector. She had a fair sum of gold to pay this time around and she didn't want to keep the collector's waiting any longer than she had too. Her little sisters deserved more.

A woman who sat at a elegant, yet simple stall spoke out to her as she passed by.

"You! You there young lady. Hold one moment. I have a portent for you if you would only listen. I won't even charge you."

She had seen this fortune teller before and had heard that she was eerily accurate in her predictions. Yet the temptation had always been squashed with the mention of the prices she normally charged for such services. She couldn't afford it.

So when this woman called out to her and mentioned that she would not have to pay a single coin, it piqued her interest.

"For me? Very well, but make it quick if you don't mind. I . . ."

"Have a debt collector to see concerning the financial straights your parents have put you in?" At her widening eyes, the woman continued. "Yes, I have seen your hard work and devotion to your younger siblings in contrast to your parents Arche Furt."

Arche gasped at the woman's words. Her eyes could see that this woman could cast 3rd Tier magic, but this kind of information? Did she possess a Talent like she did?

"Soon, very soon. Within the next day in fact. An entity will come to the Empire and he will turn the Empire on its head."

She frowned in confusion. What kind of man would do that? The Bloody Emperor had already done so with his abolishment of the nobility who did not perform their jobs well. It was why she loathed her parents so vehemently.

"Be mindful of his appearance, for it will be your salvation from absolute death. Hair of brilliant crimson and eyes like a rainbow shall be your signs. Fear not his power, for he brings wings of change. You need only reach out and grasp it."

She nodded as she mentally noted the description of crimson hair and rainbow colored eyes. Though that last part made little sense to her. Was that even possible? Two toned eyes were a unmistakable sign of power, but eyes like a rainbow?

Before she took a step away, the image of her twin little sisters flashed through her mind.

"I'm sorry, but what of my sisters? I'm doing all of this for them."

The woman smiled.

"I foresee a haven for them, but you will have to work hard for it to come to fruition. Those around you are affected by your decisions more than you realize young one. Now take this as a token of my hope for you and be off." She tossed a small satchel at her.

When she caught it in her hands, there was the unmistakable feel of coins. It was no small amount either. Slightly appalled and shocked at the gesture, she looked up in panic.

"I c-can't take this fro . . . m . . . you? Fortune teller? Where'd she go?"

Arche glanced about in confusion. The stall was gone, she was gone. There was no sign that she had ever been there, yet the pouch of coins was definitely real. Finally coming to the acceptance of the Fortune Lady's generosity, she hurried down the road toward the debt collector to make another payment.

* * *

 **Character Profile 12**

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 **Furious Flame Dragon Lord**

 **Dragon**

 **Position:** Furious Flame Dragon Lord **(Self Proclaimed)**

 **Residence:** Wyvern Rider Territories

 **Racial Levels:** Dragonling = 10 lvs.; Young = 10 lvs.; Adult = 5 lvs.

A Flame Dragon who is the fifth youngest son of one of the Argland Council State's Councilors. His pedigree has made him arrogant and deluded, believing that his flames from his breath weapon are superior when in reality he hasn't faced anything that could withstand him. Draconis's [ _Aura of Supremacy_ ] nuked that mindset, crushing his resolve and pride when met with something so superior it made his own father seem trivial. Fearing this new existence, he sets about freeing the young female dragon he took against her will. Luserina is following him to make sure he does what he was told.

* * *

 **I know that this one was a little short on the word count by comparison, but I felt that this section needed to set up some vital work with Draconis and his nature. Like Ainz, he is no longer human. Though not undead like Ainz, being a supremely long lived race changes things a bit. Not to mention his achievements and interactions with some of YGGDRASILS most powerful entities.**

* * *

 **Review Responses!**

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 **PoseidonisPlayz:** Thanks for the review! Thanks for the compliment as well. I'm a firm believer that you can have all the good intentions and still make things go FUBAR faster than an evil person can. Likewise, bad guys can end up having startling reasons and sad circumstances that THE GOOD GUYS should have seen/helped/stopped/etc. To prevent their fall in the first place. A good example of this kind of thing and a person who learns and understands it while NOT giving up on their beliefs is Kenshin Himura of Rurouni Kenshin. Likewise Hajime Saito of the same. Two different methods and mindsets, yet which one is the right one? Not so simple. Thanks again for the review. I hope to see more of you in the future!

 **Arawn92:** I did state it after the stats in her description. She is a dragon like Draconis is. The first number is her human form stats. The second number is her stats in her True Form as a dragon. Maybe I didn't state it . . . ? (Looks back over chapters) . . . nope! I did. You might have missed it or misread it. Hope this clarifies things!

 **Ilireanwri:** The review is appreciated. Thanks for your continued support!

 **RyuujiVantek:** You shall see. Thanks for dropping in again!

 **Omegadramon2:** Chronos isn't SkyNetting everyone, but he is keeping tabs on certain people. Don't worry about the double PM. The site is having difficulties a bit more often lately hasn't it? Hrrmmmm . . . . Also, no, she's not a reference to Lucina of Awakening or Camilla of Conquest. She like a Final Fantasy Dragoon in style.

 **MadDan90:** Nope, I never got your most recent review for Chapter 10 . . . but the site is having issues lately . . . Hrrm . . . perhaps . . . do I hear chapel bells? Maaaybe? Maybe not?

 **Awayuki:** Well now . . . It's not like I don't find some of them worthy of keeping around . . . yet so few are actually mentioned and given page or screen time that it makes it hard to decide. Thanks for the review!

 **Zahkrii:** I'm really glad that you came back when you had the time and are enjoying the fic! Stick around for more fun and mayhem.

 **Pking10:** Well, first of all. Welcome to the Overlord community. Second of all. Thanks for the very insightful PM. I do not know whether or not you received my reply, but here ya go. I had been plotting this one out for some time on my timetable, but as I mentioned in my PM reply, it didn't really have a in-canon reason to with the timeline only covering less than eight days into their transfer to the New World. Hope this starts to do that concept some justice. I think you'll like where I go with this struggle of existence as a Dragon rather than a Human. Drop a review to let me know what you think!

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 **To all readers regardless of whether or not you review, THANK YOU. You're support really helps keep me going. Until the next chapter, stay safe, read well, and review!**


	13. Chapter 12: Arche's Challenge

**Overlord: The Exile**

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 **Disclaimer and Notes: Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama. It's licensed by YenPress. Support the official LN releases. No really big announcements for this one! Enjoy! XD**

* * *

 **Chapter 12: Arche's Challenge**

* * *

Lucia and Draconis landed several miles outside of the capital of the Baharuth Empire and reverted to their human forms. Dressing in less elaborate armor and weapons, Lucia motioned for him to do the same. At his look of concern, she shrugged.

"I know my outfit is still pretty snazzy, but c'mon. Work with me here."

She wore fur lined half plate armor with teal and white embellishments in the woven clothing. The armor was a matte indigo that seemed a bit worn. It matched fur lined knee high greaves of the same and elbow length gauntlets with fine linen lining. Her head band trailed long down past her shoulder blades. A short half cloak lined in silk and fur lining stuck out from the shoulder armor. Her spear had changed to an adamantite, two pronged weapon with the same perpendicular handle that she used as a foot point when using her diving spear attacks. Earring of sapphire sparkled on each ear.

He sighed and magically changed as well. He rematerialized from the light that surrounded him in a leather and silks long coat with multiple belts with various accouterments including compasses, a collapsing spyglass, and tassels. The tails of the coat slung down to just above his ankles. The double breasted nature of the coat remained open at the neck, revealing a pure white ascot neatly tucked into the starched dress shirt underneath. The rakish design was complimented with fine leggings that tucked into knee high boots with a slight heel. The shins of the footwear was plated and the knees were also armored, though lightly. The coats shoulder armor was only slightly lopsided, with the armor heavier on his left than his right. His gloves were silk and had no armor at all.

The ensemble was white with black belts across the chest of the coat and two more around the waist at an sling angle holding a pair of bastard swords of adamantite. Lucia whistled.

"Niiice . . . that's the Sky Pirate's Armor of Fending from the Valkyrie patch. Pretty rare."

"You're one to talk, that's the Valkyrie's Cuirass of Maiming from the same patch. Looks good."

The two laughed a bit before walking toward the city walls. As they walked, she noted how he went without the shield.

"No shield this time? You always were using the sword and board combination."

"I specialized in dual wielding with the sword and board to give me both bludgeoning/bashing damage and slashing or piercing all in one. This time I feel like just swords this time. Freshen things up a bit."

She shrugged and they continued onward. As they came closer, she started into a tourist guide like pep talk.

"Behold! Arwintar! Capital city of the Baharuth Empire. The Bloody Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix is the current Emperor of the Empire and considered its best in history. Right now they are in a sort of golden age of development. It may surprise you."

He nodded as she went about speaking.

"At the center lies the Imperial Palace, which is in turn surrounded by the Magic Academy, government buildings, and other universities of learning. The roads are actually stoned and bricked and segregated into traffic lanes with raised sidewalks and fences to protect pedestrians."

He was genuinely surprised by that. He dared say that only Avalon would trump that level of development here, give that their own roads were paved and bricked with fine marbles and other quality stones. Lucia continued unabashed.

"They keep the streets lit at night with magic! They also have a Grand Arena and several fine places to gather and meet. The Singing Apple Pavilion is considered by Workers to be the finest inn in town bar none. That's where we'll be heading."

"I see. That is actually quite the accomplishment. Impressive."

She smirked at him.

"It is isn't it? Don't get too loose here though, Workers are not bound by regulations like Adventurers and platoons of Imperial Knights constantly patrol to ensure the safety of the city and its people. The young Emperor is quite militaristic. He's called the Bloody Emperor due to the bloody reform he brought down on the nobility here. He cares little for incompetence and if you can't prove your worth as a noble, he strips you of your titles and if a commoner can do it better, they get the job."

He frowned in concern at that point. Even though he had heard mention of it from Aarik back in Tildeus, he hadn't heard about how bloody the changes had been.

"I see." He really did. But was the killing implied the fault of the nobles who couldn't stomach the loss of title? Was it the fault of a young emperor with a vendetta not seen or heard of by others outside his circle? Draconis shook his head of such thoughts. What had happened was in the past, and not his business. At least not unless the Bloody Emperor got involved with his own.

"Oh! You have a Ring of Magic Suppression?"

He nodded at her question and held up a hand with the silvery mithril band on it.

"I haven't taken it off since I appeared in front of Draudillon the first time."

She nodded firmly.

"Good, don't take that ring off whatever you do. Fluder Paradyne leads a group of veterans that constantly scout for magic in the defense of the city. Detecting our level of magic ability would cause all kinds of problems."

He nodded and mentally sighed in relief.

As they approached the gates, a squad of guards called out to them. He noted that they had archers atop the walls. A main gate military checkpoint. The group looked well trained and well disciplined. No need to cause trouble when it wasn't warranted.

"You two! This way please."

As they approached, the guards took stock of this man and woman approaching their city. The archers had caught sight of them farther out and spoke of possible adventurers approaching. The guards eyed them both with a bit of concern. No one could see any plates signifying an adventurer. Their armor and weapons were classes above what the general rabble of Workers were equipped with. Who were these two?

"We're from further south." Lucia spoke slowly. "My partner and I are here to meet with a friend of ours at the Magic Academy."

The captain of the squad glanced over them. They carried no packs and had no pack animals with them.

"How far south?"

"Quite. Just outside of Wyvern Territory. We hitched a ride with a convoy a few days ago and parted ways after our scrolls of [ _Fly_ ] wore off."

At the mention of Tier III spells, the guards tensed. Workers with enough resources to gain such powerful scrolls?

"Who at the Magic Academy are you here to see?"

"Lady Miranda Kryos."

The group flinched. The witch of the Academy? They knew that woman? Knowing her penchant for oddballs and crazies, he didn't feel like invoking her ire, much less her attention in general. Motioning them toward the gate, he cleared his throat.

"Harumph! Enter. Only do not disturb the peace."

"Thank you captain. C'mon already." Lucia jogged ahead and Draconis sighed with a shake of his head and smirk.

As he caught up to her, he glanced at her from the corner of his eye.

"Is this Miranda real?"

A cheesy grin crossed Lucia's features.

"She sure is. And I suspect she's at the Singing Apple Pavilion as we speak."

A question of who this woman was crossed his mind, but he figured he was about to find out regardless. If she was this bubbly about it, what could it hurt?

* * *

 **Singing Apple Pavilion**

* * *

"So wait, you're telling us that the Fortune Teller woman that's been around the city gave you a fortune for free and then more?"

Hekkeran Termite frowned as Arche sat at the table with the other members of Foresight. The young blond nodded silently. Imina sighed as she took a heavy swig from her mug. Hekkeran eyed her worriedly as this was her third tankard. Her drinking habits were frightening.

"I wish I as fortunate to get a sudden free bonus."

Roberdyck crossed his arms in front of him and nodded.

"A blessing unexpected, but not to be forgotten."

A woman entered and they all ignored it. People came and went through the inn all the time. They were out of the way conducting their team meeting. Yet they did not expect to hear soft footsteps approach their table. The group looked up and Arche froze. It was the Fortune Lady . . . but it couldn't be! She knew this woman from her days at the Magic Academy.

"Lady Miranda . . ."

"Ara . . . Arche. Good to see you again. I'm seeing a friend in a just a moment here. The man I told you of should be with her. I think you and your fellows here would benefit greatly from meeting him. I see tragedy if you miss this chance."

Leaving them with those ominous words, Miranda Kryos sauntered to a table at the far opposite end of the tavern and took a seat.

Miranda Kryos. A dean of the Magic Academy of the Empire, she was known to be able to cast Tier IV magic. A retired member of the Imperial Guard, she was in her early forties. Still quite pretty for her age, she carried herself with aplomb and distinction for being a master magic caster.

Her hair was only just beginning to whiten. The vibrant brunette hair gracefully faded. Her face held the beginnings of wrinkles due to her magical affinity. Her eyes were still sharp and clear and her mind was far from being gone. Oh the number of foolish students that tried to pull one over on her and regretted it when she broke apart thesis and actual spell alike with her knowledge.

She wore a long blue robe with a simple day gown under it. Gone were the days she ventured out and about in dangerous areas to learn anything she could about the surrounding world. Yet she didn't mind it.

Despite her spells not being as potent as Fluder Paradyne, she was also more sensible when it came to magic theory and the desire to learn more about magic in general. She wasn't so obsessed as to lose all sense of propriety and manners when something grandiose came their way.

Then again, perhaps it was her Talent that kept her from being overwhelmed by the new discoveries and revelations in magic. _Mind's Eye of the Oracle_ allowed her to catch brief glimpses of the future. However, the timetable for such a thing was hazy at best and indistinct at worst. However, that did not stop her from seeing into the future at random moments. Well, seemingly random at any rate.

The truth was, only she herself knew what her Talent did and she was very tight lipped about it. She had a habit of muttering nearly incomprehensible things, mostly the visions she'd receive on the occasion. It mad her seem like madness had set in at times. It earned her the whispered moniker, "Miranda the Mad".

"Um . . . Arche? What was that about?"

Hekkeran looked at their youngest member with some amount of concern. Imina had sobered up a great deal and nodded in silent agreement. Her face began so show a bit of worry. They weren't adventurers so why would someone like a dean of the magic academy give one of their own a telling message?

"I honestly don't know. I think it has to do with the fortune she warned me with."

Roberdyck frowned but kept his voice even. A concern for one of them may not be for the others of the team, but it would still affect them. Personal problems were just that. Personal. Others of the team did not interfere in personal matters as a professional courtesy. Adventurers were no different in this regard.

"What kind of warning would a dean from that institution give you?"

"Lady Miranda said that I should be on the watch for a man with crimson hair and eyes like a rainbow. That he would bring change to the Empire and that he would save me from an absolute death."

At her words the table chilled considerably. They knew what that implied. That the woman across the room from them had seen their guaranteed deaths. Did this mean that only Arche would be saved? That they would die and only she would make it? They were no slouches, the equivalent of mithril ranked adventurers, but they were no fools either. Arche was a key reason why they'd come back on several jobs.

Hekkeran shifted uneasily. His chainmail shirt jingled under his clothing. Glaring hard at the table, he made sure not to point his eyes at Arche. She wasn't at fault for this news. Still, he found it hard to just accept the words of a magic caster, even one like Miranda the Mad. Running a hand through his blond hair, he huffed.

Imina stared into her mug, drink forgotten till now and yet she didn't feel the urge to finish it. Arche grit her teeth and flexed her hands. They were no longer hands that a noble girl would have. They had become hardened to dangerous work and harsh conditions alongside the rest of Foresight.

The door's chime rang again and a woman entered in with an energetic gate that didn't quite match her age. Not that she was too old looking, but her light footed steps seemed off for the armor she wore and spear she carried. They couldn't help but stare a bit at the lavender hair that cascaded down to just past her shoulder blades. Before the door could close, a tall man entered and the group swallowed.

He stood height and hair above Hekkeran's 170 cm. That alone set all of them on edge. He was a giant at least nearly a full foot taller than Hekkeran. Yet his frame was nearly nothing but a seemingly perfect combination of lean and chiseled muscle. The armored coat her wore looked like a personal tailor had measured it out and crafted it. The two swords at his side made their leader glance at his and sigh despondently.

"Two bastard swords? Are those adamantite?"

Someone at another table spoke a bit louder than expected. What occupants were present now paid more attention to the newcomers.

"Red hair." Arche whispered as she froze in her chair. The rest of them looked for the second sign. The man looked around the building with calm demeanor and nodded quietly as if approving of the establishment.

Imina gulped before muttering just loud enough for them to hear her.

"Eyes like a rainbow. Prismatic eyes . . . oh gods, her prophesy . . ."

"Draconis, over here. Quite gawking at the architecture and get over here."

The man chuckled as he was called out. He walked over to the table Miranda and this other woman were at. Hekkeran and the others observed him as he went to the two women. He pulled the chair out for the lavender haired lancer and pushed her back in to the table respectfully before taking his own seat with a level of grace and smoothness that made Imina envious.

"He's like a saber tiger. Lithe, and deadly. That man's seen real combat. Not against monsters, but real wars."

Imina's observation was agreed on by Hekkeran and Roberdyck. Arche frowned. Such graceful movements hinted at nobility and prestigious upbringing. Was she to be saved by a noble? Something she hated due to her parents delusions of grandeur and lost glory?

"Arche? You gonna talk to him?"

"I. I don't know. He seems like nobility. Like the very thing my parents can't accept that was stripped from us by the Bloody Emperor."

The group stared at her in surprise. No one messed with personal affairs, it was one of the unwritten rules of a team of workers and adventurer's alike. This was news, and though she hid it well, they could hear an inkling of anger and disdain. Their magic caster clenched her hands into fists that began to tremble.

"They're the reason for my family shame. We . . . we're in debt because they can't let go of their living though we've lost all titles. They borrow money from shady people to try to make ends meet and it just drives us deeper. It's why I became a worker." She finished with a sad tone but shed no tears.

"Really? Do you need us to go punch them a few times?"

"It sounds like they need to hear the word of God. No, the fists of God seem more appropriate here."

"Why don't we just go ventilate the stuffing out of their ears?"

"Please wait. I would rather talk with them about this issue. Given the circumstances, I will need to take my sisters with me."

The group looked at each other again at that bit of information. Hekkeran looked to Arche.

"You have sisters?"

The nod that they all received made each of them exchange glances again. Given the dangers and risks that they encountered on every job they took, perhaps she should quit this profession before her sisters found themselves without a single dutiful caretaker. Then they all remembered the first time they met Arche.

She had been a mere fourteen with a staff taller than she was in her boots. Her magic ability had floored them and for the past two years they'd worked with her. In all that time though, her gear and equipment had not improved much even with the rather posh sum they had managed to acquire throughout all their adventures. This revelation about her parents and debt explained why.

It was the downfall of blind greed.

As equals they all knew how much each of their other members earned as the payments were split evenly. Professionalism overrode personal feelings in their profession. Yet they could feel her apprehension. Under normal circumstances, a normal worker group would have expelled her immediately.

They were not most Workers.

That same professionalism also pointed out that she was the reason that they'd made off as well as they had over the past two years. However, being in debt could color things and her judgment about future work. Such was their predicament now that the cat was out of the bag. Was this what Miranda had seen? They all sighed.

"Well, seeing as we haven't had a decent job in a while, let's find one."

Hekkeran then looked rather coldly at Arche.

"Sorry for the bluntness Arche, but you don't get a say in the future jobs we take until you've resolved that issue on your own. Whether or not it's by talking to that man over there or not."

She nodded quietly.

"I understand. It's understandable since I'm in debt."

She stood from the table and made her way toward the red haired man. Imina hissed at her.

"Where are you going? I thought you didn't like him cause he reeks of a noble?"

"I want to find out something with my eyes."

They all knew what she was talking about. Her Talent. She wanted to see how strong he was. If there was one thing that they all could respect, it was power. Maybe she just wanted to find out just how this man differed from a rich man with privilege compared to them. People who worked even unpleasant jobs to make their living.

* * *

 **Across the Tavern of the Singing Apple Pavilion**

* * *

"Miranda~ . . . It's been too long. How have you been?"

Lucia singsonged as Draconis took the chair out for her and she sat. He pushed the chair back in and then took a seat himself. Miranda took the man in with discerning eyes. She had seen portents of a man with blazing scarlet hair and rainbow eyes, but she had not envisioned just how tall he would be! He was towering, and yet moved with such grace that she figured him a phantom more than flesh and blood.

"Indeed Lady Lucia. It has been some time since we last spoke. Five years in fact."

Lucia nodded as drinks were brought out to them. Chilled ciders and water. The woman smirked as she took a sip.

"I'm well aware Miranda. I've not been asleep for much of it. The beastman invasions to the south ensured that my alliance with Baron Whitepeak is constantly active."

The two women nodded. Miranda looked to Draconis and bowed slightly.

"So you are the one I have seen in my visions. I bid you welcome."

Draconis lifted a brow in surprise. The concept of prophetic visions and the like were not something new to him, but to actually be the object of one was what intrigued him.

"Visions you say? You're an oracle of some kind?"

Miranda smiled and laughed at the notion.

"No, nothing as powerful as that. I only get them sporadically and even then they usually aren't so detailed. You however, have been quite clear. Which is why you have sparked my interest. I can already tell that you hold power like Lady Lucia, so I won't pry into your life. It isn't my place and you are both well beyond my powers."

They all took a drink from their mugs. Miranda took a heavier draught than they did and set her mug down with a smirk.

"Unlike others in power here, I know my place and am content with it. If those that are more powerful desire my advice or abilities and it aligns with my beliefs, then I will help where I can. If it means I die for it, then that will also be my lot in life."

The frankness of her statement threw him off for a moment. He glanced and Lucia and she nodded a few times with her own cat like grin. Nodding in understanding and acceptance of her statement, he took another, slower drink before speaking.

"Very well. I can accept that. Lucia has told me that she has a friend here that can help me. Though in what capacity she has not told me."

Lucia spoke up when Miranda gave her a look that seemed to ask why details had been omitted.

"Don't look at me like that Miranda! To clarify, I need you to tell me whether or not you can sense another presence within him."

Draconis nearly spat up his drink at her blatant question. It was so upfront and without preamble that it caught him off guard. Then he realized what she had asked of her friend. Did Miranda really have such a power? Or did she develop a spell for such a thing?

Tier Magic was odd like that. With so many spells and powers available, it was literally impossible to know them all. Even if you were in the top percentile of players in YGGDRASIL who memorized every spell they knew, the sheer number of other spells you didn't learn and master were impossible to account for. It was one reason why you always stayed wary of magic casters. That one oddball spell you didn't know or that sounded cheesier than hell could lead up to a shameful beating.

Miranda focused on Draconis for a moment, then frowned.

"No. He does not."

Lucia sighed in relief, but Draconis frowned in concern.

 _Then does that mean the voice in my head is from without rather than within?_

Something that could get into his head and affect him like previously was a serious threat. Especially with the passive and active wards he had up, not to mention his _Draconic Spell Resistance._ A World Item? He shook his head and sighed.

"Regardless, I thank you for checking."

Miranda seemed to take satisfaction in helping them in that regard.

"Well, I can't be the only reason you have traveled so far to Arwintar."

The two dragons nodded and Lucia leaned forward as she spoke.

"As you know, the Dragon Kingdom to the south has been invaded by the Beastmen Kingdoms. I have agreed to move a portion of my own forces to lend aide to his own. However, I fear our numbers won't be enough as we're having to train the citizens of the Dragon Kingdom from scratch. Given the disparaging differences in strength between humans and beastmen, we've come to petition the Emperor in sending more aide."

Miranda nodded gravely.

"I see. Not that I don't understand and sympathize with your situation Lady Lucia, but . . ." Miranda shot them both a narrow eyed gaze. "Do you really think that you can convince him with mere words? He cannot stand Queen Draudillon and holds her in utter revulsion due to the magic she uses to make herself a child when she's not."

Draconis nodded slowly before speaking.

"I wonder if he is aware that she only did so under duress of losing support in the higher ups contributing to what meager defense they could muster. I can assure you that has changed since my meeting with her."

Miranda gave him a sharp look and witty grin.

"I will take you at your word milord, but I am not the one you need to convince. Though I think the a person who could help you along with that approaches now."

As she glanced over his right shoulder, and purposeful set of footsteps came up behind Lucia and Draconis. The steps were short and quick, signifying a person of shorter stature. Both of them turned to see a young woman with elegant blond hair cut short.

"Lady Miranda, this is the man you spoke of?"

Her voice was relatively soft, but there was an underlying steel to it that caught their attention. They way she spoke not to them, but to Miranda also made them curious. The older woman nodded once and chuckled.

"This is indeed him."

The young woman looked at him directly in the eyes. Draconis sat at her eye level and merely stared back into her own with patience. Lucia also wondered about this young girl who stared at her friend with such intensity. They could both smell an odd level of animosity coming from her, but they didn't feel like it was directly due to them.

"I can't see his power. Is he hiding it somehow?"

If they weren't surprised before, they were now. They glanced at each other with wide eyes. Draconis leaned back toward Lucia and eyed the girl while connecting with a [ _Message_ ].

" _Is this the reason you asked about the Rings of Magic Suppression?"_

Lucia merely nodded.

" _Yeah, though it was mainly reserved for Fluder Paradyne himself and certain mages under his command. I don't know this girl, but I think she's like Fluder is. If that's the case . . ."_

" _Then we need to tread carefully. Got it."_

Miranda answered the girl with a serious voice.

"Just because you can't see what he can cast, doesn't mean he isn't strong dear. He is a swordsman and his companion, Lady Lucia is a lancer. His skill level is on par with hers, and she is very strong. They don't need to cast magic to be powerful."

While Miranda wasn't wrong about that, the two dragons felt like the older woman was stringing this girl along for whatever it was she wanted out of them as well. Being manipulated by the dean somehow struck a nerve with both of them. Then again, it would prove counterproductive to butt into their conversation at this point.

The two took sips from their mugs as they thousand yard stared at the older and younger woman glare at each other. Well, the younger woman was glaring. Miranda merely smirked with a glimmer in her eyes that reminded them of a gambler who knew the deck was stacked in her favor. Both of them looked back at each other with the same realization. Both of them shouted at each other over the [ _Message_ ].

" _We've been played!"_

" _Dammit!"_

The young girl clenched a fist as she realized that Miranda wasn't wrong, but something just felt off about these two. She didn't know what though. Turning to Draconis and Lucia, she gripped her staff in both hands.

"Are you a noble?"

 _HEH?!_ Draconis raised an eyebrow in utter confusion. Where did that question come from? Lucia leaned forward in her chair with a quirked and lifted brow as well. Her face twisted in consternation. She had no idea where this question came from either. To say that they were confused was an understatement.

"My apologies, but might we know your name first? I am Draconis Brightblade. This is Lucia Thundercry."

The girl seemed to enough sense to realize how sudden and foolish she sounded just then and cleared her throat before speaking.

"I am Arche Eeb Rile Furt. A member of Foresight." She eyed both the red haired man and lavender haired woman over for a moment before continuing. "What Worker group are you a part of? And are you a noble?"

Draconis fought the urge to sigh, but failed as it came out as a groan. Lucia actually laughed at his response as Arche frowned. Realizing his error, he held up a hand in appeasement.

"That was rude of me. However, my frustration stems from the constant segregation of your Adventurers and Workers." He made gestures at each term as if separating them into two differing containers. His voice was filled with scorn and disapproval. "To go on record, I do not have a staggeringly high opinion of these adventurers so far. The Fierce Flash Cerabrate was a child and a pedophile besides. If this is what it means to be adamantite, then I am sorely disappointed. Queen Draudillon Oriculus is better off after he lost his challenge to me in single combat."

Everyone in earshot listening now made no subtle gestures at their consternation.

"EH?!"

"Bullshit!"

"He bested The Fierce Flash in single combat?!"

"Impossible . . . he beat an adamantite one-on-one?"

A solitary figure darted out of the Singing Apple Pavilion in a very urgent manner.

Well aware of the scene they were causing, Draconis returned his gaze to Arche and she flinched. His demeanor had changed. There was an intensity there that seemed to pierce her very existence. The prismatic nature of his eyes now fully registering in her own. The myriad colors were not a fixed spread of the visible spectrum, but actually shifted and swirled in random patterns. She could feel something old, ancient behind them as well even without her Talent.

"I am no adventurer of the guild. Nor do I belong to a worker team. My allegience lay only to my beliefs and those in need, no matter the race, no matter the nationality. Also, I am not a noble. Now . . . with that being said. May I help you?"

She gulped before finding her voice again. She could feel her teammates walking up behind her.

"May? Don't you mean 'can' Red?"

Imina spoke with a bit of hostility. Hekkeran nodded as he stopped just behind Arche. They didn't quite believe his claim about fighting Cerabrate. Though they did find it interesting that he had no love for the guild. Roberdyck sensed some level of spiritual presence on the man so it drew his interest as well.

"I mean what I say. I 'can' supplies having the ability and power to do so. I ' _can_ ' help her all I want. But!" his eyes narrowed to a point and his glare made Imina flinch. "The word 'may' requests permission and approval. I can help all I want, but it does nothing if it is not wanted. Therefore, I ask _may_ I help you?"

Not expecting the speech lecture about the details of speaking and its importance, the group could only stare in bewilderment. Obviously this man was well learned and cultured. What was he doing fighting adamantites and in a invaded kingdom? What was he doing here? Was he a noble from the Dragon Kingdom? No, he just said that he wasn't one. Yet how could he not? His speech and conviction, the clothes he wore that they could see under armor, it all screamed some kind of nobility.

"I take it you are all Foresight; which makes you all her teammates. Take a seat. It can be seen as rude to talk to another while standing. Condescending too."

He gestured at the table beside them. It was close enough to Draconis and Lucia's own that they could slide it together to extend the table for all to sit at. Foresight shared a collective look and nodded. They moved the table to join the two and took seats with the two foreigners and Miranda.

Hekkeran took another glance at the matching bastard swords at Draconis's side. Now that he could see them closer, he could tell they truly were made of adamantite, but something about them was off. Shaking the feeling, he gave the group's conversation his full attention.

"You say that you aren't a part of a worker team, but what about you?"

Lucia raised her brows and pointed to herself like a deer in headlights. Her antics made Draconis shake his head and sigh. He hadn't even looked back at her. They wondered what kind of chemistry these two had.

"I wasn't expecting to be in the spotlight, but answer your question. No. I'm not part of any worker group or adventurer team. We're more like . . . soloists who occasionally team up."

?!

They were soloists? They went out and did jobs by themselves with no other support whatsoever?

"You're joking. That's insane . . ."

Imina spoke all of Foresight's minds. It was suicide no matter how careful or prepared you were. Even adventurers, with their researched, "safer" jobs didn't do such a thing. How did you heal? Potions? Too expensive and impractical. How did you deal with monsters you couldn't get close too? Always carry a bow or crossbow? You'd be too loaded down and one could only carry so many bolts and arrows. Too many monsters were also possessed either thick hides or hardened scales or other outer armor that rendered archery useless. What if you encountered a horde of monsters? It was chilling to think of such jobs by oneself.

"There's no way your doing that without magic of some kind. How are you hiding it?"

Arche's question made Draconis look at her again.

"Might I ask why it is you are so fixated on this? Ignorance is bliss young lady. I have seen and experienced nightmares beyond compare. Lucia has been here more than I and so warned me of those possessed of Talents to see one's magical capacity. You don't go around letting everyone know your own skills do you?" He frowned as he answered his own question. "No, you don't, because that is professional suicide in the adventuring and worker business."

The others perked at his words. He was a swordsman in addition to being a magic caster? His wording was practically a confession to knowing magic! A magical swordsman? Was this how he could go about by himself on such dangerous ventures? How had none of them heard of such a man? Even working alone, you'd have to report in to someone. Otherwise you would never get paid. Unless he personally interacted with every single client he took and received payment from said client in person every time as well . . . no that was just impractical. He couldn't be that eccentric . . . could he?

"I. I, I just don't want to have to ask for help from something that reminds me of my irresponsible parents."

Her voice sounded deadened and everyone at the table, her teammates and Miranda, Lucia, and Draconis all remained quiet for a bit.

"What do you mean precisely? It is a bit hard to help someone when I have no knowledge of how are what I am supposed to help you with."

Arche glowered at Miranda and both parties looked to her. Draconis had a lightbulb light up in his mind.

"You've seen something about her and it involves me doesn't it?"

Miranda gave him a smile like a cat that got the cream and he grit his teeth.

"The young miss here has the same kind of Talent that Fluder Paradyne has. She was a hardworking student in our Magic Academy until the Bloody Emperor stripped noble houses of their titles. Arche resigned from the Academy to care for her younger sisters. Yet her parents . . . well . . . that is not for me to explain."

To their surprise, Lucia glared at Miranda, an actual dark aura surrounding her and giving them chills just looking at her. Her eyes glowed and that was when Foresight realized something. The woman before them had two toned eyes! Orange and blue shined like sun and moon.

"Miranda. What have I told you about manipulating others in this capacity even in good will?"

A hand forestalled any talk from any side as Draconis frowned and waved Lucia down. The woman grunted and calmed. Her aura diminishing. The others around the Pavilion quickly filed out of the building once she did. The oppressive power than she emanated had been unlike anything anyone there had ever felt. Even Foresight had to steel themselves from bolting.

"Enough! Lucia, calm yourself. Our auras are more than normal people can hope to handle. Control yourself. Lady Miranda, have you not ever heard this phrase? The road to hell is paved with good intentions?"

There had been a parable of something like that that Roberdyck had vaguely heard of during his religious studies. Yet it was more of a darkly pragmatic saying than an actual religious reference. It was one of the reasons why he had quit the Adventurer's Guild and become a Worker.

"Do you not care who or what may happen to innocent bystanders for the sake of one person? A single action never affects just one person. An act of charity to the deserving can spark jealousy and envy in another and lead down a destructive path that renders others to suffer. An act of justified punishment can be seen as unjust by others and spiral into revolution against people who are actually upstanding and render both sides to tragedy. Did this not occur to you?"

Miranda knew full well what it was that he spoke of. Frankly she was surprised that he thought such things and felt so strongly about them. Yet despite that, she also felt a bit a scorn for the man as well. It was the kind of talk only the powerful could speak of. Perhaps that was why it irked her. She could not deny that he was truly powerful, and knew it. Yet he did not flaunt it. He was truly concerned about how his actions affected those around him. Some would call it vain, but his eyes and inner fervor spoke volumes.

"It did. Yes. However, I believe that the costs are worth it. Some things don't require change, but change is not inherently a bad thing."

He huffed and turned back to Foresight, but continued to speak to Miranda as he eyed them each in turn.

"Fine then." He turned his voice back toward Arche. "If my help is what is needed to seal your . . . well being? Survival against a darker future? What is it that will secure your trust in me?"

Arche thought for a moment. Did she blame the Bloody Emperor? No, not really. Her parents had done a fantastic job of earning her eternal ire at their horrid lifestyles and delusions. Though her mother was no where near as her father and she at least spent money on things that were a bit more practical given the circumstances. But even then, accruing debt on debt was the same no matter how many coins changed hands. All she cared about now was her sisters, Ureirika and Kuuderika. She couldn't leave them to become slaves or worse when the debt collectors would inevitably come for them as payment when the money didn't.

She valued strength now, the strength needed to survive. She wanted to see how strong this man could possibly be that would "save" her and her teammates from an "absolute death". She knew exactly how to witness it without risking herself or the others in Foresight.

"I want to see your strength in the Grand Arena. Fight all the way to the Marshall Lord and best him in combat. Do this, and I'll set aside all doubts and suspicions."

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Jin Lu Quo sat on the very plush cushion indian style with the younger beastman wolf cub that had been spared. Another day in this "classroom" with lessons being taught by a very pretty horselady. A centaur if he remembered correctly. The other two beastmen with them stared at the large board on the wall with writing and sketches. Pictures taught them better, so pictures were being used more often than written text.

He was honestly enjoying this quite a lot. The revelation that there were more non-humans here than humans was astonishing. They were all so educated and cultured. It honestly made him even more ashamed of his previous life decisions and lifestyle. It seemed like his other compatriots felt the same when the comparisons of children and offspring had been voiced during one very early class.

The beastmen with them did not have offspring yet, but even they did not want their future generations torn to shreds and eaten. It was a startling and reviling wake up call. The spell used to make them finally realize how horrible it was . . . [ _Nightmare_ ]? Made them "wear their victim's shoes" as the centaur had said. They were on the receiving end of a "raid". It awoke their conscious.

Now they were all dedicating themselves to learning. Craftsmanship and farming. Agriculture they called it. It was harder than raiding, but when meals had come to them and they had been told that meals like what they now ate came from the hard work put in. They came to appreciate the effort. Not only that, the meals were incredible! Never had they tasted such delicious food! That by itself was enlightening beyond compare. With what they were learning of herding and farming and other such land mastery, they could provide for themselves as long as they lived without risking their own lives except to protect their things!

The cultures of other races were interesting to him and the young one, but not so much for the other two. They did pay attention, but they weren't as passionate about it as he and the youngling. Not that he blamed them. Though they did perk up whenever the centaur brought her friend, the fox lady. She was stern and they could tell she was powerful. She was also quite beautiful. When one of them asked her why she looked human, she told them right out that it was to get along better with humans and those who worked with her. When one of them insulted them, she transformed!

Tall ears of golden yellow fur with nine . . . nine tails! Amber honey eyes glowed fierce and her voice echoed like a thunderstorm! Razor sharp fangs glistened and promised a gruesome death. They didn't repeat that set of insults ever again . . .

It seemed like the youngling took quite a liking to the lessons and learning. He was absorbing knowledge like a piece of paper.

Break came and the four of them proceeded to an area called "The Atrium". They rather liked this location. Mainly due to the enormous windows and view of the mountains they found themselves in. They were not bothered or questioned, though the occasional watching guard would pass by and give them a quiet nod. They had little doubts when they had arrived that the majority of everyone here was far stronger than them. Fooling around with the weaker ones living here would only invite wrath from the stronger ones. Yet it was impossible to tell exactly who was stronger than who. There were only a very limited few who could be set apart as stronger than the vast majority of being living here. One of those was the elven woman who brought them here. The women with her that night, the two raven haired katana wielders, and that human mage.

That man. Samael, they could tell immediately that he was overwhelming strong. Nevermind the sight of an actual angel had blown them away. That they all answered to the same liege. A dragon! Here was their answer. A dragon had finally gotten involved. They knew at their cores that they could not fight a dragon, but seeing all of this . . . this defied anything they had thought of. Why would they want to fight this?

The Atrium was where many gathered to relax and enjoy the view. Posh cushions and seats or couches to rest on were scattered about. Many of the denizens here simply lounged or even napped. Some took meals at the tables provided. Even the most powerful beings here in this place relaxed here from time to time.

Jin Lu Quo wondered just how he could repay the mercy shown to him and the others. It would be something he would ponder for a while.

* * *

 **No Character Profile this time around. Sorry. Next chapter!**

* * *

 **Reviewer Response time.**

 **MadDan90:** Yeah, I think Arche really got screwed in the LN and the WN. Her little sisters in the LN via tweet even more. Just too sad . . .

 **OmegaDramon2:** I love that you are into the story. I can't give you the answers to a lot of your questions. That'd spoil the fun and the surprise! Keep reading to find out. All in due time.

 **OverWarlord:** Thanks for dropping a review! I hope to continue writing this to its fruition. XD

 **Pking10:** I don't believe I will use Seraphim. For one main reason. Like Crystal Tear of the Dragon Kingdom, they are there, but not fully fleshed out yet. As a result a retro-active change may be warranted whenever the Light Novels get that far. As I stated in a previous Author's Notes: I MAY, not WILL make changes to their team based on how well written they become. They may not change. As for other guilds. A lot of that is speculations on our part. Only Kugane Maruyama truly knows whether or not they will show up in the LN. That being said. I don't wish to write myself into a rewrite hole if I can help it. Don't worry, they'll have MORE than enough opposition when it rears its head.

 **UndeadLord22:** That's the thing . . . we don't really have stats on PDL or the others yet, so who knows?

 **Lew89:** Thanks so much for the support! Drop in to the reviews again in the future! XD

 **Ilireanwri:** Glad you thought so. When they hear about it, it will cause quite an amount of concern.

 **RyuujiVantek:** Oh, you'll see. Maybe he will, maybe he won't. Draconis isn't really there to take over, just get help for poor Draudillon.

 **Zahkrii:** You got my PM reply so that's one thing down. Lolz. I'm glad that my fleshing out of the New World, even in my own mind's eye and what little I've put out there entertains you. Keep in touch!

 **Shinano-Voidstar:** Thank you for dropping a review! Glad you are enjoying it.

 **R.E.W.4:** Welcome! To be truthful, the Light Novels are great. Up until you hit Volume 11 and 12. We're all hoping for a redeeming Volume 13, and Kugane stated that it is the longest one he's written so far. Just because it's the longest, doesn't promise to be the best. I feel personally that he may lose a lot of his reader base depending on how this one turns out. Many of us, myself included are feeling like the OP needs to get balanced out . . . HARD. That and other details. Like Momonga manning up an telling Demiurge and Albedo off sometimes. Eh, we shall see. Still love the New World setting myself. So I'll keep on writing! Thanks for stopping in. I hope to hear from you again.

 **So here we are again. How will this culminate? Grand Arena coming up!**


	14. Overlord Character Interactions I

**Overlord The Exiled**

* * *

 **Character Cast Interaction I**

* * *

 **Public Service Announcement.**

* * *

 **Reis Nailo:** Hello there ladies and gentlemen across the internets! I thank all my followers and reviewers for their time and efforts in reading and enjoying The Exiled! \o/

With me today is our one and only Draconis Brightblade, Arche Eeb Rile Furt, and the Overlord himself! Ainz Ooal Gown. Artorias and the others are in dress rehearsal so they won't be with us for the moment . . . (cough, cough . . . Three chapters! . . . cough!)

 **Draconis, Arche, and Ainz:** Greetings! Hello there! UMU!

 **Reis Nailo:** Anyway, we are all here today in the studio to discuss something that has come up and we all find concerning.

 **Ainz Ooal Gown:** UMU! **Eyes glow deathly red.** A number of humans have left [ _Messages_ ] to our esteemed Reis Nailo, Supreme One of Most Supreme Ones next to the Godly Overlord Kugane-dono, stating concerns for my good friend Draconis and little Arche here. In addition to the activities of my friend Draconis in the kingdom that even **I** have no clue about. That is all well and good, yet a few of these have gotten rather out of hand and out of place.

 **Draconis: Nods sagely.** Indeed. The reviews are public domain and criticism is appreciated for our so far beloved writer. However, emotions and sarcasm cannot be expressed via text. Even with the emoting phrases, and signs that we can put up like Ainz and I did all the time in YGGDRASIL because the devs couldn't be bothered in a DMMO-RPG . . . ugh.

 **Ainz:** Umu! Stupid devs . . . Anyway! That being said, even I can tell you that certain things typed and said, though done in good spirit or in efforts to help improve things, can come off has self serving to others, or arrogant to others. See Arche's comments to Draconis about looking like a noble when she hates what they mean to her – for example.

 **Arche:** Hey! I resent that! It's in the script and I'm sticking to it! He gets the nice clothes and armor and stuff. I can't improve my gear for TWO YEARS because of my stupid parents and my love for my little sisters. I'm going to stick it to Draconis. **Bows to Draconis.** Just playing my part here. I actually rather like the character you play.

 **Draconis:** No offense taken Arche. That being said, I'm supposed to be rather perceptive to those around me. Miranda dropped the clues about Arche's private life and issues. I connected some dots and viola, I need to ask her how to earn her to trust. I honestly thought you wrote it well enough for the readers to understand Reis Nailo.

 **Reis Nailo:** I'm grateful you think so. I had to reread my chapter a few times to see if I botched my own writing that badly. Found one or two things I should've picked up grammatically, but meh . . .

The big issue is that a few of you have suddenly turned the public review area of The Exiled into a keyboard warriors playground. That's a no-no! **Points to sign in review lobby.**

 ** _"No Keyboard Fighting in the Review Room. Thank you."_**

 **Draconis, Ainz, and Arche look to sign that glows as a holographic display in three places in the review room.**

 **All:** Ooooh . . . . it's neon . . .

 **Ainz:** I did notice someone anonymously . . . or rather, not so anonymously reviewed specifically to call out one other reviewer and give nothing to the story improvement. I noticed he/she is also not there anymore. Why is that?

 **Reis Nailo:** You're not the only one with [ _Grasp Heart_ ] Ainz. Mine's just specifically aimed at reviews. Tier X spell [ _Review Annihilation_ ]. No Save, instantaneous, Non-Dismissable, Non-Counterable. Instantly inflicts the **[Deleted]** status on reviews the host of the story deems unwarranted or inappropriate or just personally offends me to that level of action.

That being said . . . I've NEVER had to use the thing until now. Kinda sad really. I should never have to use such a thing.

 **Arche:** Such a frightening and sad spell to have to resort to. But you said you've never had to use it before?

 **Reis Nailo:** Never. Now, I have been in touch with offenders to this via the PRIVATE MESSAGE functions. Some things just never need to be public domain. FOR A REASON. Questions about potential spoilers, ideas to me via the story that (cough) might offend some others?

 **Draconis and Ainz nod in agreement:** Well said . . . the review lobby is not for arguing with each other and causing our dear writer stress. He has enough of that with his job, family, and what little free time he gets outside of gifting you all with a story he does not just for his own personal entertainment, but yours as well. Right Ainz?

 **Ainz:** Umu! **Nods vigorously.** UMU! Even Sebas and Demiurge are more civilized when talking to each other. Follow my children's . . . scratch that! Behave! Or I'll have Pandora's Actor turn into the scariest, ugliest thing you fear and pop out from your covers in bed when you are in it! HHHHahahahahaha! **Emotion Control kicks in.** Damn . . .

 **Draconis and Arche and Reis:** Damn, that emotion control really sucks . . . Don't tell me that kicks in when you feel ANY strong emotions . . .?

 **Ainz begins to sulk. Stormclouds form over his head.**

Wow . . . ouch . . .

 **Arche:** Anyway. Said people have received [ _Messages_ ] from Lord Reis Nailo in concerns to this. One has shown contrition, that is regret and apologies, and promised to control themselves in the future. The other has not responded. Be that for good or ill is beside the point. The last and most recent review has suffered the fates of the fierce [ _Review Annihilation_ ] for it's unneeded, unwanted, and inappropriate nature.

 **Draconis nods:** Any review that follows the lines of A) Personal insults against other reviewers. B) Tries to start a Discussion Board Forum like argument. C) Is a blatant flame (No One Has Posted Such A Thing) no worries there :P. Will be dealt with accordingly. What is accordingly you may ask?

If it pops up as a (Guest) and you put a name there, well . . . first of all, that defeats the purpose of (Guest). Second of all: Really? You can't make an account and leave an official review? It costs NOTHING to do so even after Reis Nailo has been an account holder for more than 16 years.

If it's under this set of circumstances, it's a target for the [ _Review Annihilation_ ] spell. If it's official with an actual account. Well, the moderators get contacted.

 **Ainz:** Don't get the GM's of involved . . . they actually do police the site . . . unlike certain devs of a DMMO-RPG . . .

 **Draconis:** Alright. Enough with the serous topics. Reis, I got a bottle of Vodka and Mountain Dew.

 **Reis Nailo:** Done! **Grabs glasses and ice.**

 **Draconis:** Arche, you're underage in this world, so I'm sorry, none for you unless you're fine with just the Mountain Dew. Ainz . . . you can't drink can you?

 **Ainz:** That's fine, I've got to go for the next part of the script for The Exiled. So I'll step out now . . . **Leaves via [ _Gate_ ].**

 **Arche:** Aww . . .

 **Reis Nailo:** Chocolate Oreo milkshake?

 **Arche:** Ooh! Okay! **Takes milkshake, and sips happily.** Mmmmm . . .

 **Draconis and Reis salute with glasses.** Take care everyone. This has been an Overlord: The Exiled Cast Service Announcement.

Have a good day/night and remember . . . respect each other here. No Keyboard Fighting in the Review Lobby.

Seriously. Don't.

* * *

 **I tried to make this humorous and funny, but seriously, don't make my story area caustic.**

 **I had fun writing this little rabbit trail despite the circumstances so expect to see one of this little "Cast of Characters Interaction" chapters every now and again. Those of you who brought this on, you know who you are, don't deny it. Those of you who I have received apologies from and promises of better behavior, are appreciated and I will hold you to your word.**

 **Once again everyone. Have a good day/night. See you next chapter. Which is already a good way through being written by the way.**

* * *

 **Reis Nailo**


	15. Chapter 13 Learning

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Please support the official LN release. The Hiatus is over. I've spent time (when not at work) writing and plotting and have more coming your way in good time. I've also ordered Volume 6 of Overlord from YenPress. I've read all the translated stuff through Volume 12, but having the physical copy is just so darn satisfying. Plus it means I can go back through them for references and other tidbits as I wish even without the online access.

Volume 7 and 8 will be out in hardback by YenPress this year as well. I want to say May for Volume 7 and September for Volume 8. If you have been having problems reading english translated volumes, YenPress provides at a reasonable price for a hardback. Well, I think it's reasonable for a hardback. :P

On with the show.

* * *

 **Chapter 13: Learning**

* * *

Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix sat upon his throne. The goblet of wine tested with his Ring of the Unicorn. His advisors stood around either side of the grand carpet leading up to the throne. Kneeling was a single man. The report that had passed from his lips caused concern for all present. They had only just received reports from their spies in Re-Estize of Gazef Stronoff's encounter with the Magic Caster Ainz Ooal Gown. Such a man of magical power fight the Slane Theocracy's Sunlight Scripture to annihilation was not someone to pass over.

Now there was another man who claimed to have bested Crystal Tear's leader Cerabrate in one-on-one combat? A scarlet haired man of incredible height who carried twin adamantite bastard swords and bore eyes like the colors of a rainbow? A magic caster of superlative power and a swordsman of superlative skill. Now, the swordsman was in their very capital and Fluder Paradyne was in the process of divining the magic caster Ainz's location, though it was taking more time than he thought Fluder had anticipated.

"A man capable of defeating The Fierce Flash in single combat. We had received rumors, but now that the man has appeared here. I wish to see for myself his martial prowess. If he's even close to the rumors, then such a man would surely be of use to the Empire."

To his left, one of his Imperial Knights, Nimble Arc Dale Anoch the Fierce Gale stood with his hands clasped calmly behind the small of his back. Given the title of Count purely on his own achievements, he was one of the strongest warriors in the Empire. He bore good standing with his family and obviously the Emperor. For one as young as him, he was strong and cunning in equal measure. His well kept, short blond hair was well groomed and his blue eyes were sharp.

To his right, the leader of the Imperial Knights, Baziwood Peshmel. His beard was scruffy and barely kept, but the gruff appearance suited him. Having grown up in the back alleys of the Empire, he distinguished himself as he aimed to become a knight in order to escape certain death in the sludge of those diseased back streets.

Both of them wore their adamantite full plate with pride. The dark black and red trimmed armor was enchanted to further reinforce their protective properties. The sighting of the Scarlet Swordsman as they were now calling him, had stirred the warriors blood in both of them. They wished to see this man's self proclaimed prowess in some manner.

"Indeed. He could very well be a formidable sword to add to the Empire, my Emperor."

Baziwood nodded in agreement with Nimble. Such an asset would be a massive boon in the upcoming annual battle with the Kingdom of Re-Estize.

"Send men to observe him. Do not contact him quite yet. I wish to attain a measure of him first."

The advisors and other gathered men and women nodded. They each bowed and left the room until only Jircniv, Nimble, and Baziwood remained.

"Tell me for truth, do you think the four of you as my Imperial Knights could best such a man?"

Baziwood and Nimble thought about it for a moment.

"One against one and he defeated an Adamantite? With a whole host of witnesses to boot? I think you have the right idea to observe him first."

Nimble furrowed a brow in thought. If Baziwood thought as much, then it would be wise to merely observe instead of allowing his warrior spirit to blaze at the wrong instance.

Regardless, he couldn't help but smile a little in anticipation.

* * *

 **Singing Apple Pavilion**

* * *

Draconis gave Arche a thoughtful look. The members of her team looked at her in surprise. Miranda smirked and chuckled at the challenge. Lucia bit her lip. The Grand Arena hosted fights against monsters and other would be adventurers and workers. She didn't doubt that Draconis would triumph, but the amount of publicity was not something she thought they needed in the Empire.

Hekkeran Termite nudged the youngest member of their group.

"Oy, don't you think that's a bit much? I mean, the Martial Lord? No one's beaten him."

Draconis looked back at Lucia with a questioning expression. Lucia frowned as she began to explain.

"The Martial Lord is widely considered the undisputed king of the Empire's arena. There have been eight generations of Martial Lords. The first two have passed away. The current Martial Lord is Go Gin."

The nods around the table confirmed what Lucia told him.

"Very well Arche Eeb Rile Furt. I will participate in this Grand Arena and face the Martial Lord. I trust that will convince you of whatever it is you doubt?"

"Yes. But if you can cast magic, then I would rather you didn't rely on it."

He frowned, but nodded.

"I swear to not use any of my spells in the Grand Arena."

Lucia bit her tongue. How far was he willing to handicap himself? She hadn't even told him just what the Martial Lord was. Not that she believed that anything in their arena could actually kill him. There was a hard limit to just how powerful a monster or team was when fighting. The tamers and keepers wouldn't keep anything they couldn't keep restrained, which meant the monster only got so strong.

"Hold on a second. If you do know magic why bother with swordsmanship?" Hekkeran voiced in concern. Even if he was volunteering for this and agreeing to a handicap, even he wasn't that vindictive. He eyed Arche, who seemed to get what he was saying.

Draconis raised a brow at that.

"Isn't it natural to train yourself to have a fall back when one thing you do doesn't work?"

The way he stated his reason plain and as if it was the most natural thing in the world stunned them. It also made sense in a way. Yet not everyone could balance that kind of training.

"That may be sound logic, but how long have you trained for that? Most people can't, or don't have the ability to."

Draconis frowned and scratched his head thought.

 _How do I answer that question? I feel ancient now that I came to this world. I'm sure Lucia feels the same. Is this the dragon blood that flows in my veins? Huh . . . a human soul in a dragon's flesh . . . I'll have to ask Samael and Cecilia about my changed physiology later. That's going to be awkward. Might as well be mostly honest. Can't drop the whole truth on them. That'd probably scare them away._

"Quite a long time I'm afraid. The magics I've acquired and adventures I've been through had an affect on my aging. Lucia and I have known each other for ages. Literally."

Lucia actually snorted and giggled a bit before slapping him on the shoulder.

"I remember the day we first met. You were searching for a greater power and when I told you what you had to do to acquire it, you went running off like a kid for candy! Hahaha!"

Foresight was shocked to see the man blush as he clenched his eyes shut. His hand covered his face in embarrassment.

"I did . . . I didn't think you'd remember that. It was . . . I've lost track . . ."

Lucia poked him in the cheek with a finger, a teasing grin on her face as she practically leered at him in the fun of the moment.

"Five hundred and sixty-seven years ago."

The words affect were immediate . . .

"HUH?!" Hekkeran's jaw fell open. He stared openly at the two with a brow rising so high it seemed like it was going to fly off his face and to the ceiling.

"What?! You're lying!" Imina glared and grit her teeth before turning to the bartender and lifted her hand to the roof. "Bring me the strongest thing you got!" She hollered before muttering under her breath. "This is a bad dream, it's just a bad dream. I'll wake up later plastered."

"I-I-Impossible . . . that's . . ." Arche seemed to shrink a little as she thought about what his age – if it was true – implied for his magic and swordskill.

"God preserve . . ." Roberdyck stared and clutched his holy symbol. A man older than Fluder Paradyne and Rigrit Bers Caurau of the Thirteen Heroes! What power and experience did he have if he was wandering the world for such a long time?

Much less, all of them looked at Lucia with some worried expressions. Who was she? This woman who declared that Draconis had come to her for advice for power? It implied she was the older of the two, or the stronger of the two? Both perhaps? The very thought of that being the case made Hekkeran shiver.

Miranda narrowed her gaze at him and both dragons in the room felt it. Lucia's friendship with Miranda the Mad revealed to the mage that Lucia was actually a dragon, so she had a feeling Draconis was no ordinary person, but this?

However, seeing the man and dragoness skirt the age and training question to an extent told what she needed to know.

 _So, this Draconis fellow probably isn't human either. Maybe a fellow dragon at best, incredible magic caster at worst. I can understand his desire to keep_ _what he is_ _a secret_ _to some and known to others_ _. The dragon kin have always been a varied and eclectic bunch. Perhaps it's this wanderlust that Lucia described having every now and then that makes them interact with the land_ _and its people_ _like this._

The woman clapped her hands once. The noise drawing everyone's attention.

"Alright. That's shocking and enlightening in equal measure, but if Ser Draconis is to fight in the Grand Arena, then he still must register first. Shall we be on our way?"

No one argued that point and one by one, each of them stood to leave.

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **-Royal Training Grounds-**

* * *

Draudillon sat at the center of the large area of the training grounds. Those who had been training around the grounds, mostly guards and other soldiers who had volunteered for the defense of the kingdom, watched with curiosity. The gray haired warrior that sat across from their queen sat Indian style and also had he eyes shut. They were both breathing in sync with each other and every now and then the man spoke in deep, rumbling words that felt like they could shake a person's soul. Yet it also felt soothing to her in a way.

"You can feel the power that flows in your veins when you are either calm, or emotional. Emotional outbursts can be dangerous for dragon blooded however, so calm is the better and safer way to unlock your potential powers."

She nodded quietly as she focused inward. Meditation was the last thing she had expected out of the heavily armored dragon blooded subordinate of Lord Draconis. He wielded no visible weapon either, but something told her that it was better than he not carry his armament here. He was surprisingly insightful and answered her questions with simple, but concise answers.

He was a Shadow Dragon. She asked if he was similar to Deep Darkness Dragon Lord and he had asked her who precisely the dragon was. Since she didn't truly know about the Deep Darkness Dragon Lord's powers fully, she couldn't honestly answer in return. It was then that she remembered that Draconis and his entourage had arrived here due to some magical error. It was possible that they didn't even come from the same continent. That would certainly explain much.

Another continent to the far west was known for five legendary magical beasts of power that guarded the kingdoms found there. Even the weakest of these was stronger than Re-Estize and the Baharuth Empire. Ancient tales told of a kingdom before the advent of the Eight Greed Kings that had tried to expand their influence to said continent, but were wiped out of existence by a single kingdom from that land in a short four months.

But that was for another day. Now she found that her blood pulsed with strength she had not felt before. Part of her wondered if this was due to the presence of Samael sitting across from her. He gave off an imposing presence, but it was not threatening. It was as if he was trying to coax her own blood to awaken. Sounds became clearer, her smell slowly became sharper. Surely her eyesight would also increase if she but opened her portals to the world again.

She could hear Samael's pulse. Steady and strong. Like a drum beating a singular beat that reminded her of stories about the tides on a beach. Those watching her new mentor and her varied in their own tempos. Some were fast and excited to see their queen and this warrior across from her. Others were quivering in anticipation, expecting to probably catch sight of something spectacular. A few were more normal, merely watching out of curiosity. Draudillon laughed a little on the inside. She could not blame them for watching. How often did one's ruler simply join the training grounds and sit in meditation?

As written in the missives from his liege, Samael and the other two left with him, Tod and Hazuki had set about teaching and training those who began to volunteer to defend their kingdom. They had a surprising number of people arrive the following morning after his departure with Lucia Thundercry. Tod and Hazuki had filtered through everyone who wished to volunteer.

Tod had methodically sifted through the volunteers for those who had potential magical aptitude. Hazuki did the same for those more physically adept. She could not tell how they were sorting them out, but it appeared that they both had some kind of analytical spell to determine potentials and aptitudes. Despite all the sorting, they were also surprisingly conscientious and perceptive.

Those too young by whatever definition they were using were refused frontline roles, but encouraged to help in other ways. Similarly, those deemed too old, were also granted other tasks to help those who did qualify for frontline duties. It had chaffed a few, but secretly, Draudillon could tell that many families were rather grateful for such perceptive minds. Men and women both were accepted into frontline roles.

Through her meditations, she could faintly make out the sounds of the physically inclined in training. Running laps around the grounds, performing "push ups" and other such physical exertions. The more magically inclined had also been pushed into physical training, though no where near as strenuous. When asked by one recruit earlier that day, she remembered Tod's words well.

"What's the point of magical spell casting when you can't get away? Or worse, when you can't reach your allies fast enough to help? Magical prowess is no good without some sort of physical fitness as well."

Likewise, those working to become better fighters had wondered why Hazuki had arranged for them to take a certain amount of scholarly lessons.

"No matter how strong and dexterous you may become, a sound mind and quick wit will save you more than you realize. It matters little how strong you are when your mental quickness is not good enough to realize what your opponent is up to before it's too late."

They were such interesting views to their training. There was little doubt to their prowess when petite looking Hazuki lifted a man with one hand when the question of her strength came up. More so when said person wondered how she could be their instructor. Tod needed little to convince those studying from him. Magic was something that if you knew how to wield it, you already had a certain level of respect and fear from the rest of those around you. Hazuki had harmed no one, but she had worn a cheeky smirk when she lifted her doubtful trainee before setting him back on the ground in front of his friends and family.

So far they had five hundred total volunteers. Though only half of them would actually fight on the frontlines. The other half were working hard in other areas. Learning medicines and healing from priests and priestesses of the church. Father Yoland had rallied the church to teach those who could to heal regardless of its source being magical or not. Others had sought out merchants and traders who made the effort to teach cooking, organizing, and other trade skills to maintain the new organizing army of the kingdom.

It wasn't much by any of the other nation's standards. It could hardly be called a militia, but even so, morale was beginning to rekindle its lost flames. With the arrival of Draconis's wards and followers of obvious skill and ability, the people who once looked like they could barely hold on began to regain something they had thought lost.

Hope.

"You are smiling Queen Draudillon."

Samael's voice shocked her from her meditation as she gasped and her eyes shot open. The Commander of The Lair's Guardians looked at her with one eye open as well as a small smile. Slightly coloring red in her cheeks at being caught, she sighed. For once, it was not a sigh of heavy resignation, but humored amusement.

"Yes. I haven't seen my people rally like this. Your peers and compatriots are remarkable."

He nodded slowly.

"We all have learned that we are part of a whole. Our lord has experienced much and more that we can only begin to fathom. He has much guilt on his mind if I am honest."

This piece of information made her curious.

"If I am not stepping into something not my business, I would ask that you clarify that for me. He seems like a good hearted individual."

Samael bit his lip. He had not meant to let that slip, but he felt like Draudillon could be trusted. Something about her sincere devotion and concern for her people told him so.

"I think that is a conversation best held in private council with my peers. I do not think my lord would appreciate certain details of his past just spoken on a whim. I feel that you can be trusted to know some of the burden he carries within his heart."

It was definitely not the answer she was expecting. Draconis seemed to be a bastion of confidence and level headed decision making. An experienced and true veteran as well. What kind of burden did Samael mean? The one of leadership? She could relate to such a thing, but did it trouble him that greatly?

"Let us take a break. It is nearly time for midday meal."

Draudillon looked up toward the sky to see the sun high at its zenith. She had even realized that they had been meditating for so long. Now that he mentioned it, she was becoming hungry. Hazuki approached them followed shortly by Tod. The two instructors had dismissed their trainees for meal and a bit of a break before renewing the training in the evening.

"Commander, will you take meal with us?" Tod began with no preamble. "There are some things I'd like to discuss with you. I believe Hazuki feels similar."

She nodded as Samael stood from his seated position.

"That sounds fine. Would you mind if Her Majesty Draudillon sits with us?"

The two other guardians of The Lair glanced at each other before nodding in agreement.

"We have no issues with that arrangement."

The group made their way to the dining area that had been erected for them by several servants of The Lair. They looked like the most beautiful people they had ever laid eyes on, yet something about them unnerved Draudillon. Despite the pleasant smile she put on as she was asked what she would like from the spread before them, the dragon senses she was beginning to get used to told her that these were no humans.

Samael accepted a plate and drink before chuckling at her unease. The servants smiled and traded small talk with Hazuki and Tod. Lauding them with thanks and praise alike for standing vigil over The Lair and protecting them.

"You can sense it now?"

"These servants aren't human despite their appearances. What are they? They feel . . . abnormal."

Samael nodded in answer to her observation. As they walked away and to a private table, he waited until they all had set their food and drinks down and taken seats. Samael held her chair out for her, though Hazuki and Tod went ahead and sat themselves. Once Samael had taken a seat himself, he finally answered her curiosity.

"Your senses are already showing marked improvement. You are correct. They are all homunculi."

She couldn't help to look back and observe them again for a moment at that information. There were at least ten of them serving the meals alone. The concept of a homunculus for magic casters was not as widespread as many might have believed it to be. Despite that, tales of achieving such a thing were still fantastical things. A vessel to transport the soul to and subvert death and aging was one very popular view. Another was utilizing them in the way she had just been served. Taking care of household or common everyday chores. Yet the concept required magic that many considered too volatile and dangerous to make worthwhile.

Yet here were more than a dozen and they would be nearly indistinguishable from a normal person save for their unearthly beauty and grace. There were subtle differences in each of them though. Most of their hair was either brunette or a pale white or silver. Yet they all had gemlike eyes of either lavender or magenta. The females all wore their hair in various styles, from bob cuts, to pigtails. The males varied just as much, with longer hair worn down, or short cropped hair with bangs.

All of them wore the same uniform though. Some kind of double breasted jacket with long pointed tails for the guys and a shorter tailed version for the ladies. The women wore either skirts or full length dresses, though a few wore similar slacks that the men did. The tops were white that flowed into a blue at the waist and coat tails. The skirts were pleated and raven black. The dresses were also black, as were the pants. They all wore a knee high pair of boots and she assumed that the women in long dresses wore flats. The coats were trimmed in golden weave. Some of the females wore earrings while others did not. The men went plain, with clean faces bereft of facial hair and no piercings.

One of them refilled a tray of food and she noticed that this one's hair was streaked brunette and white.

"Why does she have her hair in such a streaked color?"

Samael and the others looked back in the direction of the serving line and Tod supplied the answer after he took a sip of his drink.

"Ah, that's the side effect that even our Liege couldn't figure out. Cecilia and I have a theory about it, but it's not concrete. Lord Draconis did mention that it was a sound assumption when he thought about it."

Hazuki prodded the mage with a finger to the ribs. He jerked and half glared at her.

"Alright! I'll get to the point." He gestured to the homunculi working. "A homunculus is an entity that is magically, some would call it . . . artificially created being. Given a purpose and sent out to perform said objective. However, many past attempts resulted in rapid aging and short lifespans. These ones serving us all have no fear of such a short life. They will live a long and fulfilling life doing whatever they wish. Many have chosen to serve in this capacity in a form of gratitude. Others actually took up arms to help us defend and serve Lord Draconis and our allies in Avalon. Regardless, there was one thing that remained from those days of short lives."

"Their hair going white." Draudillon realized as she turned back to her fellow occupants at the table. She took a sip of her drink and was astounded at the flavors that suddenly assaulted her taste buds. A fruity concoction that was tangy, yet sweet with only the faintest hint of sour.

"We get that reaction from anyone who tries a Fiery Tropic Fruit Limeade for the first time." Hazuki smirked at Draudillon's wonder at the drink in her cup. Her peers nodded and smiled as Draudillon finally joined them in eating.

Her cooks and kitchen staff were all excellent in their fields, but this food and drink had something else in addition to its superb preparation. She felt aspects of her being becoming revitalized and strengthened. Enchanting one's meals? On such a mass scale? It was no small wonder that Draconis had such powerful subordinates and allies. If this was the fare that they existed off of, then why had he bothered to partake in dinner with her a few days ago? Perhaps he was being polite? Or was their a cost to this food that was reserved for those in the field? Regardless, this was a revelation.

"Anyway. Samael, I wanted to speak to you about this first group that we are training. I feel that a few of them have some potential, yet coming into power takes time and careful nurturing."

Tod spoke with an analytical tone. Hazuki seemed to nod and agree as she sipped her drink.

"That should be understood by us all Tod. What manner of potential do you see in them?"

"If we do not include the adventurers from the guild and the soldiers from the actual kingdom's army, I have seen that a small number of them may actually be capable to learning up to middling Tier magic in a time frame that is surprisingly short. The issue as you may suspect, is that the kingdom itself doesn't quite have that luxury to train everyone with said potential to that point without endangering them. Somehow I do not think that our liege would approve of forcing them to face life or death odds in order to improve on such a drastic scale."

Draudillon was surprised by this news. To think such potential magical candidates existed among her people despite their circumstances. She began to wonder how many of her citizens that she had lost in the invasions of their homeland that had such promising futures cut short.

A pair of footsteps approached their table and the group looked up to see Marko and Deidre. The elven woman had regained much of her composure and color. The dragon blooded queen nodded as acknowledgement of their presence and spoke.

"Members of Crystal Tear. Deidre." The elven woman bowed at her name. "I see you are feeling better. What is it that you need?"

The two members of the adamantite team glanced at each other before Deidre opened her mouth to speak.

"I wished to speak with Sir Draconis if I'd be permitted to. I have a question concerning the potion he left me with."

Draudillon was well aware of the potion that their new benefactor had tossed to Marko after the fiasco at dinner that evening. It had been obviously potent in magic and of superlative quality if it's container was anything to speak of. Such pure, translucent crystal was rare as a container for anything. Hazuki and her peers tilted their heads in interest at the elven woman's words. When she held out the item mentioned in the palm of her open hand, Tod nodded.

"I see. He must have seen something special within you Miss Deidre."

Samael and Hazuki knew an explanation was about to spew from his lips and so they remained quiet. As curious as they were to what their liege had gifted the woman, it wasn't their place to ask or answer. Tod was a different matter. He had the magical knowledge and was of an appropriate position to answer the question.

As an Archmage, he was well versed in all things arcane and potion creation was one of them. Though High Alchemists were better at item creation, he had all the credentials and then some to craft alchemical brews and other such sundries. It was part of the reason he always smelled of odd chemicals or herbs. He even brewed his tea blends in beakers and flasks. An oddball.

Now Schwarzer Tod's eyes shined as he smiled. Hazuki flinched and scooted over a bit. He could be a bit dramatic when explaining anything related to his craft. Needless to say, when he waved a dramatic hand to the potion and began speaking, Deidre squeaked a bit as she flinched at the sudden gesture.

"Behold, before us, in your hand lies an alchemical brew of the liquid condensation of decades of vocational experience. By imbibing that crystalline decanter of its contents, you shall gain the benefits of all the years housed in that charged ambrosia of whichever vocation he deemed you worthy of becoming. Some of them may even house more than a single vocation to be chosen upon imbibing."

At the looks of astonished wonder at the potion by Marko, Deidre, and Draudillon; the kitsune weapon mistress sighed and shook her head.

"In simpler terms, this is what we call a 'Job Class Elixir'. It let's you gain instant experience from Martial or Magical vocations based on the time and effort the creator of the elixir put into it. Granted, you will not be able to perform all the skills and abilities immediately, it just makes you knowledgeable to what is possible. You still have to work to learn everything and perfect using it."

Deidre trembled slightly.

 _Such a thing would make even lifelong mages green with envy! No one has even thought of such a potion . . . What kind of powers does Draconis have? His subordinates talk of it like it's nothing world changing! Is their queendom of Avalon filled with warriors and mages like this?_

"He just tossed something this powerful away without a thought and told us that he didn't care if I used it or not?"

Draudillon shook her head and spoke, holding out a hand and pointing to the elixir in the hands of the bardic scout of Crystal Tear.

"I disagree with that observation Deidre of Crystal Tear. I believe that he is taking a gamble and making an investment. You were not present during the discussion of conditions set forth by Lord Draconis's compatriots, so you are not informed."

Hazuki nodded with Tod and Samael in sync. Draudillon took their unified response as a sign to continue.

"There are a series of terms to having Lord Draconis's support. One of them is that there will be no conquest of the Beastman Nation once we have regained all the lands lost to them. As such . . ."

Marko took a step forward in indignation and disbelief.

"My apologies, but no counter invasion?! After over a year of these atrocities we aren't going to strike back?"

Draudillon narrowed her gaze to a fine point. Marko could feel her own rage and realized with startling revelation that she was furious. The hatred that smoldered beneath her calm expression and relaxed posture seemed to leak from her being like an oven kiln at full capacity.

"No invasion Marko. In spite of many advisors and others agreeing with your indignation, myself included, I must think of my citizens first and my personal grudges second. I have been over this with Commander Samael, Master Tod, and Lady Hazuki already. It will take all our renewed might and training to push them out of our lands. Offensive campaigns take more manpower, more supplies, more time, and more strains than defensive ones. Even if we all wanted to, we would be doing that on our own. Draconis will have nothing to do with invasion. His help is only to the extent of defending and recovering our lost lands and strength to defend ourselves effectively in the future. Besides, I needn't tell you that we don't have that kind of power to begin with."

Before he could say anything in response she continued. The heat in her gaze softened considerably.

"All of that beside the point, he and his men and women are far away from home. They risk life and limb to help us even though we are practical strangers. Would you really condemn them to die in foreign lands never to see their own again when they freely offer their assistance to defend us? I could not. Not for a grudge even if we do feel it justified."

"Well said Your Majesty." Tod complimented her and her control of her emotions.

Samael nodded. He and his peers remembered the heated exchange rather vividly. Only a few of them, Baron Whitepeak included in that small camp, agreed readily to the terms put forth. Many of them wanted to have their help in taking the initiative back against the Beastman Kingdom in retribution for the atrocities they had suffered. However, Samael had coldly put their heated emotion to cool when he began stating why an such a maneuver was suicidal for their kingdom.

First was that they had no idea just how much land the Beastman Kingdom had taken over in other directions. How many of their populace was on the other side of the two kingdoms's borders. Were their only one clan ruler? Two? Maybe more? How many beastmen occupied that land just over the border? They had no clue.

Secondly, they did not know how long all of this would take. It was late summer now and almost harvest season. Did they really want to send their able bodied workers to fight a war and potentially starve their own? Draconis's forces would be helping drive their invaders out, but it would still take time. Winter was harsh and no one wished to be in the fields of war during that season.

The third reason ran parallel with the seasons and harvesting. The logistical side of such a move from defensive to offensive was a nightmare even when under the best of circumstances. Popular belief was that it took roughly three times the manpower and resources to engage in invasion and assaults rather than defensive battles. But those numbers could be drastically skewed dependent on a multitude of factors. Training, quality of troops, morale, food, drink, and even quality of life items contributed to the time needed.

Never mind the fact that the invasion had already decimated a lot of the kingdom as a whole already. The only reason they received what meager support they did from the Slane Theocracy and the Baharuth Empire was because they knew that they were next if the Dragon Kingdom fell completely. Forcing their people to keep fighting after driving the beastmen out would be asking too much.

"All of that aside. As I was saying to you Deidre, we will need renewed and experienced defenders at our borders from time to time in order to ensure that another invasion from the beastmen does not occur to our people ever again. I believe that elixir to be a way to help you in helping us. I would very much like it if you were to continue helping this kingdom's people as you have been."

Deidre could see the unspoken request that Draudillon laid before her. If this elixir could help her close the gap in power between those that threatened the kingdom and help her protect the people she had oddly come to care for in their hour of darkness, then who was she to squander it? She did have one remaining fear though. Looking straight at Tod, she bore her gaze into his despite her Talent rearing it's head and the skulls of dark black death that seemed to stare at her like a void from Samael, Hazuki, and Tod.

"This concoction won't change who I am? It won't make me someone I'm not?"

Tod lifted an eyebrow in surprise. Shaking his head negatively, he smiled softly.

"No ma'am. It will not. The experience will leave you with a bit of vertigo for a bit as the knowledge melds to your being, but you shall remain your own individual person. If that elixir has more than one vocation of experience infused in it, then you may be presented with a mental choice of which one you desire to pursue. Keep in mind that the choice is final, so if you have regrets about it later . . . well, you get the picture."

Nodding her understanding, Deidre pocketed the precious elixir securely in a breast pocket. Marko also nodded and then noticed the serving line. Suddenly taken by hunger, the two adventurers excused themselves to grab something to eat.

* * *

 **Beastman Kingdom Border Fortress**

* * *

A crude short table and a simple, yet soft bed sat in a darkened room. Despite the lack of windows, the air inside it was not stagnant. A large, striped furred hulk of muscles and deadly grace growled as he heard the report from a beastman scout that had been sent to report on one of several raiding parties. The Alpha of that group was last heard of northwest of the Dragon Kingdom capital at a village the humans called Tildeus. Glistening sharp claws extended and retracted from their sheaths in his fingers. He would not kill the messenger of this news. It was enlightening, and he did like to learn new things. Knowing that one of his rival general's raiding groups had been so routed was note worthy.

Unlike many of his fellows, he was not one to just mindlessly feast on the conquered. Strength was the order of the beastman clans and their rulers, but when had they resorted to just eating humans? He personally found it odd. They talked as they did. Acted in many ways similar despite the differences in strength. Humans had a lot of intellect and came up with other ways to deal with problems rather than beating or tearing it apart. The appearance of adventurers had proven that there were even humans and others who could match and even be stronger than beastmen.

"Khan Ziang Lu Quan?" A timid voice came from his bed. A human woman of around twenty and six summers. He had taken her as a personal servant. She had been teaching him customs of humans and other mannerisms. It was an enlightening experience. How long had she been in his possession now? Eight months? A small number of humans that lived in his fortress were his personal property and all the beastmen here knew it, but this woman was his favorite.

"What is it Julia?" The woman took a bracing breath and spoke now that she had full permission to do so.

If there was one thing that Ziang Lu Quan did without fail, was allowing those under him to speak when given permission, no matter how audacious it seemed. Or how condemning it seemed either.

"This report sounds like a very strong force has appeared to aid . . . to aid my old homeland." She spoke cautiously. "If they are not of the Dragon Kingdom, then what would you do?"

Lu Quan brought a large hand to his chin. His whiskers and fur made him appear like an elder in many ways. His tiger heritage gave him bold orange and black striped fur and a luxurious white furred front. He question was a fair one in his opinion. Yet something bothered him greatly about the report from the scouts.

The numbers. The number of fighters did not add up. The signs of battle and violence alluded to a well executed counter strike. Yet the number of assailants didn't measure up. Three sets of human footprints and one set of horse hooves amid the blood and scorched grasses accounted for their attackers. The trails of the humans released from the pens and led back to safety he assumed did not intermingle with the signs of combat.

The scents that were described were also unnerving. Only the horse prints held a sign of human scent. That meant a rider who hadn't even been unseated or bothered to dismount. One of the other sets had approached with such light feet that they had almost been completely missed if not for the scent left behind. The scent of an elf. Had the Elven Kingdom gotten involved? If that was the case then that was a very real problem. The King of the Elven Kingdoms was brutal even by his own standards.

Then there was the final two sets of prints. These two disturbed his scouts and they had shivered when recalling it to him. Inhumans. Monsters. Something dark and dangerous beyond compare, akin to "The Reapers" as the beastmen called them. The three undead dark entities that wiped clean the Silent City. His body rippled and fur stood on end as he recalled that tale.

Turning his attention to the long, cinnamon haired woman in front of him, he leaned back against the wall.

"I wish to learn more Julia. The strength of those four must be akin to these 'heroes' you spoke of during our lessons. I desire to see such strength firsthand. That and I need to get away from the other Clan Leaders for a while. Terramist is getting too rowdy for his own good again. Silverwind is with my opinion, but we're severely outnumbered in the votes on the council. The blockheads just won't admit that we are on a downhill spiral if we keep this up."

Silverwind was an Avian woman of considerable skill. A rarity, she had no mate and had no desire to take one. She rather dislikes humans as a food source, citing, "They make horrible noises and screaming when hurt and being eaten like you lot like to do. If you must eat them, kill them swiftly and be done with it. I'll stay with fish from the waters thank you."

She had impressive wings and wore them like a cloak when not flying or preening. She found the idea from a human settlement of fish farming so great that she lauded the creator of such an idea as a "mortal worthy of praise". The two of them had spoken of the dangers of reaching the end of the line if the beastmen kingdom kept on with their human devouring. Every human in the area of their lands that hadn't submitted to the might of the clans or been eaten had scattered to other lands.

Scorning farming and hunting other prey or raising cattle for food had bred a certain level of incompetence in the majority of them. The lands were wild and filled with possible game and food sources. Yet only humans were food to them as a majority. What would happen when humans were wiped clean? Who or what would they eat then?

The Dwarf people? Subterranean invasion was doomed to failure when they held mastery of the earth. Elves? They would die out faster than humans given their low numbers by comparison to humans. Trolls? Disgusting. Each other? Cannibalism? Would that become their only recourse?

It was these problems that he and Silverwind were concerned about. It was one reason why they preferred to take in humans as servants and such. The issue was the other clans who called them out and berated them for "playing" with their food. Silverwind and Lu Quan had something that kept those nay sayers at bay though.

Lu Quan looked over at his weapon. A relic that he had found buried in the ruins of the Silent City before he left it behind after seeing the truth of the Soul Eaters. The weapon made even other clan leaders respect him and fear true retaliation for insulting his lifestyle. Likewise, Silverwind also had a magical bow that she had procured from the Silent City as well.

However, Terramist was a thorn in their sides to getting their peers to see something resembling survival in the far future. Terramist had no compulsions against feasting on human flesh and was especially cruel, even to his own. The issue with opposing him wasn't his martial strength, but the fact that he could cast magic of potent power. Mystics said that he was able to cast Tier IV spells. Even with their armaments Lu Quan and Silverwind had to tread cautiously around him.

"I wonder if these warriors hail from the lands of the wyverns. If that is the case then I will have to drastically change my force deployment. I'd rather not deal with drakes and creatures related to dragons. Last thing I want is to have a real dragon breathing down on us."

He looked back at the messenger and grunted.

"Tell another scout party to observe the village of Tildeus, but do not attack it. I doubt that this force of warriors would be foolish enough to merely leave it be. If they really can wipe out a whole raider party, then you've no chance against them. Observe them, and be quiet about it."

"What of the raiding party's superiors? Terramist-sama will want to know."

"Go ahead an report it. If he decides to try and take Tildeus himself or with another raiding party, inform me. Do not assist them. I won't have you all getting killed by whatever killed that group because the idiot can't show restraint. Something just doesn't feel right about this situation."

The beastman bowed and exited the chamber. Julia had clothed herself and sat beside him on the floor.

"Julia." she nodded, awaiting his next words. "Something in my blood is telling me that something terrible has arrived. Perhaps this is karma for my clansmen . . . Have I not been fair to you and yours?"

She frowned at his words. This was unusual for the Khan. Yet his instincts were always strong.

"You have been far more fair than anything I have feared. Even some of our own are not as considerate."

Khan Ziang Lu Quan nodded at her words and took a long drink from the wine jar he had with them. Wiping his muzzle free of a few droplets that managed to escape his lips, he chuckled deeply.

"Julia, please fetch that noble of your town. I may need the lessons in diplomacy if this new powers's leader shows up in front of me."

Shocked, Julia nodded quickly and made to leave. Ziang Lu Quan merely watched her sultry form exit the room before sighing heavily.

"I have a bad feeling about this."

* * *

 **No Character Profile again this chapter, but I want to know, who you guys want to see next in the Character Profile section, so give me a ring . . .**

 **SO . . . I'm back. Now that I've had the chance to regroup and refresh, I got more coming for The Exiled.**

 **Let it be said that I have received a surprising amount of support since my announcement of a brief hiatus for the story. So much so that I can't file everyone here without this extending beyond what I feel necessary to write.**

 **I Bow to all reading and supporting. Thank you very much for sticking with me and this fic. I will try to not fall into another slump like this past one. It's appreciated.**


	16. Chapter 14 Concerns of Power

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official Light Novel release.

Honestly, I struggled with the second half of this chapter HARD. Getting the dialogue right and keeping their friendship somewhat understandable was tough. I think I went through like five or six renditions of their talk. You'll see. I hope I did this decently enough. It carries over into future chapters as they interact with the New World more. Especially on Ainz's end as he sees what his choices reap.

* * *

 **Chapter 14: Concerns of Power**

* * *

The day before had been relatively quiet and he had oddly been content with that. The Grand Arena had raked in another great profit with the last set of matches that had been scheduled for the ending of the week. Having counted and balanced the accounts before turning in for the night previous, Osk stood behind the counter of his establishment and polished one of his favorite swords crafted by the dwarves. The blade gleamed in the light of the room supported by magic so that no heat was given off.

The bell at his door chimed as it opened, yet the door did not close as several footfalls could be heard. This got him curious and he looked in the direction of the entrance.

 _What a varied group._ He wondered to himself. Being an avid collector of weapons, armor, and other war tools, he became surprisingly accustomed to the sounds of people moving in them. _Hard boots on some, but softer shoes on others. Quite the customer set this day._

When the group rounded the small foyer and entered the shop proper, his well set smiling business face faded a bit as he frowned. It was that old woman from the Magic Academy. Biting his lip discreetly, he cursed his luck. He held a prejudice against magic casters after a mage had blown through the opposition in the Grand Arena, shaming the martial warriors and their skill with a mere flick of the wrist. Magic was a certain level of cheating in his book, and as such, he did not hold them in high regard.

Oh, he could respect and even admire the benefits of magic, but in battle between mighty warriors with blades and armor it was like one should not even bother with trying. It was a slap to the face when used as a weapon. Magic had other uses in his opinion.

It was at the tail end of these thoughts however that his negative cloud ceased to form as the last two entered the room. His eyes widened a fraction. The crimson hair of the man and the lavender hair of the woman caught his immediate attention as did their gear. It was amazing! What craftsmanship! Osk could easily tell that it was superior to anything he had in his shop . . . yet it was also dashing and stylized!

 _That man is a giant among men. How tall is he? The woman behind him is just as impressive. They move like sabertooth tigers and their eyes . . . what?! She has two tone eyes . . . and his eyes are multi-hued! They're blessed with some kind of power. There's no way they can't be. Could the lady of mercantile being smiling on me today?_

"Ahem! Welcome to my humble shop. How is it that I can be of service to you all today?"

"That's enough of the flattery Osk, we're here on Arena business." Miranda jabbed at him good naturedly. She knew of his dislike of mages, but that didn't stop him from enjoying the comforts it provided. She was also aware of why he disliked mages and couldn't really bring herself to hate him for the view. He did have a point.

"You mock the basics of being a merchant Miranda. Yet I feel like this group is not your normal clientèle. Please, as Miranda has bluntly put it. My name is Osk. I regulate affairs within the Grand Arena and run this collection shop of arms and armor. Please feel free to look around and point out anything that may catch your eye."

Miranda nodded to Arche and the young woman walked up to the counter. Nodding politely she began to speak.

"Mister Osk."

"Oh, please. Just Osk. The titles make this too stiff." Arche faltered for a moment at the blunt dismissal of formality.

"Osk. I have made an arrangement with him." She pointed at the tall red haired man. "I will not accept his assistance with an issue I have that has been foreseen by Lady Miranda until I have proof of his strength. I want you to arrange an arena match with the Martial Lord."

Osk's eyes widened for a moment before he looked at Draconis with keen interest. Rubbing his chin thoughtfully, he looked over the man. He was obviously in incredible physical condition. The poised way he carried himself would be the envy of many swordsmen. The armor he wore was unlike anything he'd ever witnessed before. Then there were the pair of bastard swords at his side. Being a collector, something about them felt off. True, they were adamantite weapons, but something about their plain design was off with the rest of his gear.

"Sir's name?"

"Forgive the late introductions Osk. I am Draconis Brightblade."

"Draconis, sir, I notice that you were perusing my collection. Has anything caught your fancy?"

The man walked over to the pride of his displays. A sword with of dwarven craftsmanship that held traces of runes etched into the weapon. It was the only one he had not fiddled with repeatedly. As Osk had not an ounce of martial ability, he was satisfied dreaming of it and collecting things related to it.

"Dwarven rune weapon?" Osk's eyes widened for another moment.

"Yes. Your eyes are sharp indeed to notice the workmanship. I take it you have been around dwarven weaponsmithing to tell such a thing at a glance. You must be quite well traveled."

"Two of my personal artisans are dwarven master smiths." Draconis spoke plainly, factually, as if there was nothing special too it. Osk did detect an amount of pride when he mentioned them.

"I take it the blades at your side are their handiwork?"

Draconis shook his head negatively, surprising the group save for the lavender haired woman.

"These are spare weapons. I tend not to carry my prized equipment when I don't want to stand out. You understand as a collector."

Osk certainly did and nodded in approval. Yet at the same time, his collector's nature spiked. Adamantite weapons were his spares?! Who was this man? Surely he had to see at least one of this swordsman's more prized possessions. The very thought made him smirk in anticipation.

Hekkeran Termite and the others of Foresight gawked. Saying that weapons forged from the strongest of all metals were spares was audacious in the extreme. What more could one wield? Relics? Weapons on par with the Sword of Darkness that the leader of Blue Rose commanded?

"I do understand the sentiment Ser Draconis. In the interest of arranging your match, may I see one of your more prized weapons?"

Draconis eyed Osk for a moment before nodding once. Turning to face them, he held a hand out before them before gripping the hilt of a sword that materialized out of a pocket of darkness. The rest of them stared at the blackness as he drew a blade from the pocket of void. The blade was a translucent sky blue with azure licks of flame dancing across the blade. It was a beautiful longsword. The hilt crafted from some kind of golden ruby metal. Osk stared slack jawed, as did the others. Even Miranda stood a bit stunned.

"What kind of blade . . . ?"

"A specialists sword crafted to harm the incorporeal. A ghost and spectral slaying blade. Against the living it is no different than a regular sword. Powerful against its specialized foe, but merely a fancy weapon against everything else."

He sheathed the weapon back into the aether. Such a weapon was obscenely potent. The spectral were devastatingly deadly as they were untouchable and could fight unimpeded unless there was a potent caster in your ranks. No one could say that they'd ever seen such a weapon designed to fight off the spiritual undead.

Osk nodded as Draconis finished returning the blade to its place in what appeared to be a pocket void. That alone made him tense. It was obvious that this man could use magic of some kind by drawing weapons from the air. Yet the weapon he had just shown them at his own request told him that he had access to weapons beyond normal means.

"Marvelous. I thank you for such a presentation. Though I must ask that if you are to face the Martial Lord, I ask that you refrain from any magic you can cast."

Draconis bowed and gestured to Arche.

"I understand. I have already made an agreement with Miss Arche to refrain from my spell casting."

Lucia spoke up, a look a fain indignation on her face.

"Are you sure Draconis? You don't even know who the Martial Lord is or any details about him."

Lucia received a small smile from him as he nodded in acceptance of her concern.

"I'm aware of that Lucia. But I have given my word and I will not renege on it. I may refrain from my spell casting, but not my physical skills."

Lucia nodded in resignation. She knew who the current Martial Lord was, and while she knew that he was in no enormous danger, it was not something he needed to be spending more time than he needed on. Also, the longer it took the more attention he would draw to himself.

"Sigh . . . very well. I just think that we don't have the luxury of time with the Dragon Kingdom in such need."

Osk lifted a brow at that.

"Oh? The Dragon Kingdom is where you hailed from? I judge from your words Lady Lucia that you are here to secure help for the kingdom against the beastman threat?"

The two dragon nodded. It wasn't a huge secret that the Dragon Kingdom was suffering greatly under the constant invasion of the beastman kingdoms. Osk had nothing against demi-humans, but the invasions and mass deaths were a problem.

"In lieu of the time frame you are under, I will arrange the match for the evening two days from now. I would do so earlier, but even though I can do so, there are too many things already scheduled."

Draconis and Lucia frowned but nodded in acceptance. It was understandable, they were asking for time that was not theirs. The best they could hope for within civil interactions without hostile aggressive negotiations was for short times waiting for audiences and actions on the part of the other parties.

"Understood. Lady Miranda, would we be able to stay at the Singing Apple Pavillion?"

Miranda nodded slowly.

"Yes . . . but would you not join me at my home? I do have guest rooms."

Before they could answer her question, the sounds of guards and knights running by in urgent movements and rallying cries drew their attention. The group exited Osk's establishment to see what was going on. The guards pointed skywards and their eyes trained upward in time to see a winged form flyby followed shortly by another, slightly smaller one. Then another winged form the size of a person shot by.

Draconis deadpanned as Lucia jabbed him in the ribs.

"You didn't predict this would be that quick did you?"

The group looked at them with questioning gazes. Draconis sheepishly sighed, his shoulders sagged.

"No, no I didn't Lucia. How was I supposed to know where his lair was?" He paused for a moment. "Why didn't Luserina contact me?"

Draconis sighed and nodded to Lucia before casting [ _Fly_ ] and taking to the air. The group cringed. There was no mistaking a dragon's silhouette.

"Sorry you all. We'll be back in a moment. Unfinished business. We'll explain when we're done with this."

She launched herself skyward in the same direction as Draconis. The others were left a bit slack jawed. As she leaped out of sight, Miranda suddenly came under the scrutiny of all present. Hekkeran Termite glared at the woman.

"Who are they? Those were dragons and they just scamper off in that direction. What did that woman mean by 'unfinished business' anyway?"

Miranda the Mad shrugged.

"Don't look at me young one. I'm just as in the dark as you are. Shall we go see?"

The rest of them nodded and despite their concerns, they began to make their way towards the city walls.

* * *

 **Outside Walls (Eastern Side)**

* * *

Baziwood and Nimble had rallied knights to the entrance where a pair of dragons had landed just out of arrow range. Leinas Rockbruise and Nazami Enec all lined beside one another at the top of the battlements. The winged woman hovered above the two dragons with no armaments in plain sight, yet her armor and demeanor were unlike anything they had seen. Even their own Emperor did not radiate the same kind of aura as this unidentified woman.

"Why would a pair of dragons suddenly appear and who is that woman?" Nimble asked the opinion of his peers. Baziwood grit his teeth. The three beings merely remained where they were and the smaller of the two dragons even curled up like a giant house cat and began to doze. The woman remained standing and the red dragon sat on his haunches at what seemed to be like some kind of attention.

Leinas took a cloth from a pouch at her side and slide it under her bangs. Pressing it gently to her face, she held it there for a moment before taking it away after it absorbed the seeping taint from the curse that plagued her. Grimacing at the ever present reminder of her affliction, she crumbled the cloth in a fist before casting it aside.

"If that dragon breathes fire our direction I'm leaving." Baziwood didn't even refute her for saying that. They were strong, but an adult dragon? He had never even seen one, yet now there were two of them in front of city gates.

Nimble and Enec frowned at her lack of patriotic duty. They had always wondered why their Emperor had made Leinas one of their Imperial Knights when the only loyalty she had toward him was the promise of revenge against those who abandoned her because of the curse she was afflicted by. Not to say that she was not skilled, but her own self preservation instinct far outstripped her loyalty to the Bloody Emperor.

The three of them had always been on eggshells around her, waiting for the day she abandoned them on the field. It was one of several reasons why they trained so hard to maintain their edge. Losing one of their own to death on the battlefield was one thing, but selfish preservation?

A shadow flew overhead and drew everyone's attention. Due to the position of the sun, they could barely make out a human figure flying towards the pair of dragons and the one humanoid figure. Baziwood and his fellow Imperial Knights tensed, waiting for the fool flying straight towards dragons by his lonesome to be incinerated by scorching dragon's fire.

Tension turned to astonishment and disbelief when no dragon's fire belched forth, and instead the red dragon bowed its head for a moment as the flying person landed short of them and walked to the armored figure. The two seemed to be discussing something judging by the arm gestures and body language of the two.

Before Baziwood or Nimble could question what was occurring before their eyes, another shadow passed over them. What were their archers and spotters doing? For that matter what was the Air Guard doing? Two individuals just took to the air above their capital and they weren't stopped?

"What the hells is the Imperial Air Guard doing?" Baziwood bellowed. One of the guards in charge of runners and other communication ran up and saluted before answering.

"Apologies Imperial Knight Peshmel. The Air Guard spotted the two but could not ensnare them despite wearing their cloaks. It's like the two could see them as plain as day sir."

The soldiers and everyone gathered turned back to the scene before them with a different feeling of dread settling in their stomachs. These two newcomers had flown out from within their city in addition to evading the Air Guard under invisibility mantles? Nimble urgently waved one of the guards on station to his side.

"Find out which gate those two came into our capital from and the commander on station at the time." He began before looking back out at the dragons and figures in the distance with a spy glass enchanted for clearer picture. It was then that he noticed two details that made him stop. "No . . . is that him? The crimson haired swordsman?"

Baziwood and Enec looked to their comrade in surprise before taking a closer look with magically enchanted looking glasses of their own. A man, taller than the others with him who were not the dragons by a large margin with twin blades of adamantite. Crimson hair blew in the breeze.

The red dragon with them nodded a few times at whatever the man was saying to it. Did this mean that . . . was it a woman?

Yes, the spy glasses allowed them to see that the armored individual was definitely female. Was that woman in armor a friend of dragons? Could she be a warrior representative from the Argland Council State? Did they have dragons with them due to the situation in the Dragon Kingdom? The rumors and information that they had heard was that the crimson haired swordsman had come from the Dragon Kingdom. Was he seeking aid to their southern neighbor's plight? Had things really become that desperate?

The smaller dragon that was apparently lounging, had risen to a sitting position and drooped its head in what looked to be a pose of deference to the two who had flown from inside their capital's walls. The man and two women waved their hands at it in a placating gesture. The dragon's tail whipped back and forth a handful of times before settling down and covering its long snout with a clawed forward paw.

Enec growled as he watched the exchange via spyglass.

"What in the name of the gods is going on out there?"

None of them could appropriately answer that question. All that they could do for now was stand their and watch. Even though they could technically make a move . . . why would anyone risk a pair of dragons ire?

Eventually the armored woman and dragons took wing and began to fly south. The crimson haired man and lavender haired woman watched them depart, though the woman waved as they grew more distant. Were they allies? Friends even? There were just too many questions.

"Ah . . . so Lady Lucia knows others like Ser Brightblade does she? Certainly a pair of dragons would be potent help to the Dragon Kingdom."

The new voice from below them drew their attention to see a group of workers and Miranda of the Magic Academy. Concerned and intrigued by the older woman's words, Baziwood Peshmel spoke for all of them.

"Dean Miranda, you know them?" The woman walked up to the outer steps of the wall to join them upon the battlements. The workers were not kept away due to their association with one of the Magic Academies best and a former Imperial Earth Guard captain besides.

Arriving beside the Imperial Knights, she nodded to each of them respectfully. Though she was powerful, titles such as theirs were not merely given on a whim. They had each earned their place.

"I know the lady he is with. She and I are old friends and her companion I have only met today."

Nimble frowned in thought.

 _If that man really is the one who claims to have bested Cerabrate_ _The Fierce Flash_ _, the Emperor may struggle to get him to aid the Empire. If he's able to attain the assistance of_ dragons _for the Dragon Kingdom, then how bad are they off?_ _Nevermind the Emperor's strong negative view of Queen Draudillon Oriculus._

The other three Imperial Knights could tell what was going on in Nimble's head as he unwittingly chewed the inside of his lip. Leinas spoke up, her voice clear.

"They came to the Empire looking for aid for the Dragon Kingdom?"

Miranda placed a hand to her chin in thought even as she tapped her staff on the floor of the walls they stood upon.

"I believe that to be the case, though he is also scheduled to fight the Martial Lord in two days as proof of his abilities to someone I feel could benefit from his arrival here as well."

The workers behind her frowned. Though the knights knew not the meaning behind it. The reality was that they were beginning to realize just how manipulated they are were in Miranda's hands. Even if it was with good intentions, the situation left a bit of a sour taste on their tongues.

News that he was to fight the Martial Lord did pique their interest. With such a match, they could at least gauge how strong he was by how long he could hold out against the war troll. All four of them combined could not beat him, so it would be enlightening to see how this man would fare and for how long. This would definitely be of interest to Emperor Jircniv.

Off in the distance, the woman turned their direction and began to walk back, but the man disappeared from view. Miranda's eyes widened a moment before frowning slightly. Arche, as a magic caster, gripped her staff. She knew which spell that had been, and it only confirmed her thoughts from earlier.

 _That was_ [Teleportation] _! But that is a Tier V spell . . . I guess he really is powerful. Was he going to where ever those dragons were flying off to ahead of them? Will he return?_

No one was sure at this point. Lucia approached them and looked to the walls and deadpanned before burying her face in her hands. She had just realized that they had a crowd and who was among it. Miranda only smirked as her old friend held a look of resignation as Baziwood began to bellow questions at her. Despite the questioning glare she received from the dragon woman, she only felt her smirk grow.

 _Let's see her explain her way out of this one. This is perhaps karma for the teasing that she subjected him to. Ha!_

Though she did wonder where Draconis had gone, she doubted that he would just leave his friend to her lonesome.

* * *

 **Nazarick Outside Walls**

* * *

Greater Teleporting into the area around Nazarick was simple. He had also cast [ _Greater, Invisibility_ ] just before teleporting to eliminate any scrying that may be going one around the Great Tomb as he appeared. It was a standard practice for unknown situations a player was going into during YGGDRASIL.

Entering the protected field from scrying inside Nazarick's formal borders, he fired a [ _Fireball_ ] into the sky, a similar spell shot into the air from just inside the courtyard leading to the graveyards of the 1st Floor of Nazarick. Flying over the walls and into the first sections of the outer tombs, he was surprised to be greeted – not by Shalltear Bloodfallen, but Yuri Alpha and CZ Delta. Frowning slightly, he landed before them before dispelling his [ _Greater, Invisibility_ ].

The two Pleiades Battle Maids bowed to him and he nodded to acknowledge their greeting before speaking.

"Yuri Alpha. Shizu Delta. I thank you for coming out to greet me. I've been asked by Momonga to meet him for some manner of incident. Are things alright?"

The two maids rose from their bows but did not make eye contact with him. The two of them actually felt rather guilty greeting The Exiled instead of Shalltear, but give her current mental state, Lord Ainz had told them to go in her stead. It wasn't their place to tell Lord Draconis of what was going on. Yuri glanced at the dragon and coughed lightly.

"My deepest apologies Lord Draconis, but it is not our place to say."

He frowned and glanced about the otherwise vacant mausoleums.

"That response implies that you do know. If that is the case, then if Nazarick and its denizens are anything like my Lair, then they would all know of something that has happened to call for my return to discuss things whether Momonga wanted it to be secret or not."

The two maids grimaced at his insight. Truly great of him, even as an exiled Supreme Being. Dragon of Dragons as many in Nazarick knew him as. Given how even the 41 Supreme Beings of Nazarick took cautions against certain dragons when fighting them and hunting them, Draconis was respected despite his moments of past violence against the Supreme Ones.

Some thought that his fights against the other Surpeme Ones were because they had been over hunting Draconis's kin. Other rumors were that they had waged battle against his mate. Whatever the case may have actually been, it was well known that he and Ainz-sama were still friends. There were those in Nazarick who couldn't comprehend how it was possible, but there were also those who were in awe of such camaraderie despite the fighting they had waged in the past.

"Ainz-sama awaits you in the throne room."

Draconis raised an eyebrow at the name, but remained silent and nodded as Yuri Alpha proceeded inward. Following behind, they proceeded down through the first three floors and Draconis saw no trace of Shalltear Bloodfallen. He sensed very few undead on all three of the mausoleum floors and that unnerved him more than the usual hordes of them that populated the first gauntlet of Nazarick. Had he sent Shalltear out to do some kind of mission?

As they arrived at the entrance to the fourth floor, a [ _Gate_ ] opened up and a voice from within surprised Yuri and Shizu.

"Lord Draconis, I have permission from Lord Ainz to send you directly to the Throne Room of Nazarick."

"Aureole Omega?" Yuri frowned in confusion at the sudden actions of her youngest sister. CZ Delta gave out a small "Uwah~!" in response to hearing her youngest sibling.

"Hello Elder Sister Yuri Alpha. I'm sorry for not sending you a message earlier about this, but since Lord Draconis does not possess a Ring of Ainz Ooal Gown, he did not wish to keep Draconis from speaking with him any longer than needed."

Yuri nodded in acceptance. If the Supreme One that remained with them when others had left wanted Draconis to speak sooner by making use of their youngest sister's abilities, then who was she to question such a prudent decision? Turning to Draconis, she bowed.

"My apologies for the sudden change Lord Draconis."

He waved her apology away with a small smile. He had a feeling he knew what was going on.

"There is no need for apologies Yuri Alpha. Thank you, and you as well Shizu Delta. Tell the other Pleiades I wish them well."

The two pleiades battle maids bowed deeply at such regard for their well being despite Draconis not being one of the 41. Draconis stepped into the portal of swirling dark energy with a feeling of trepidation.

The chamber he entered was not the Throne Room however. All around him was a different kind of beauty. An exotic air of purity permeated the surrounding chamber. Light pastel pink blossoms fell to the ground in swirling blankets and verdant green trimmed grass surrounded him on all sides at his feet. A creek passed by a large crimson Torii Gate that was beside a vigilant Sakura tree.

Under said tree was a dark crimson blanket with a large sun parasol of red and white alternating stripes. Sitting underneath the parasol and on the blanket was a mysterious looking girl with well kept silk bandages over her eyes. Over the bandages across where both her eyes were was a singular pattern of an eye embroidered in gold. She wore the traditional garb of a miko, white kimono with red hakama.

She sat and seemed to look straight to his soul. A small smile graced her lips. To her left was a short girl with a fox mask over her face. The girl looked to him and bowed in greeting. To their right was a boy with his own mask designed like the sun. His bow was shallower than the girl, but still deep enough to show appropriate respect.

These were Uka-no-Mitama and Ootoshi-no-Kami. Brother and sister attendants to Aureole Omega. The two of them were actually stronger than the rest of the Pleiades by a wide margin with Uka-no-Mitama being level 85 and having a bestial alternate form that traded all her magical abilities for an outrageous physical boost. Ootoshi-no-Kami was her elder brother and just as powerful. Aureole Omega was a very special NPC even in Nazarick and in his personal opinion, a lynchpin to the guild home of Ainz Ooal Gown.

He bowed deeply to Aureole, which she smiled and returned it at equal depth. He knew full well that he was in an area of Nazarick which no one usually was ever allowed. He had even thanked her on occasion as they transported through Nazarick in the past as a part of the RP he maintained with several of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown during their prime. White Lace and Blue Planet were particularly fond of her as an NPC due to her station and powers.

Floor 8. That was where he know found himself, and yet this chamber was beyond sacred and forbidden to the NPCs of Nazarick that did not belong there. Further more, this was The Cherry Blossom Sanctuary. A special chamber within the 8th Floor where the only person really holding the cards here was Aureole herself. He mentally doubted that he could win if she went all out for any reason unless he went full dragon form and rampaged unfettered. The tranquility here rendered aggressive actions – especially toward Aureole Omega – condemning in the extreme. It was like being in a [ _Maximized_ ], [ _Extended_ ], [ _Widened_ ], and [ _Permanency_ ] enhanced [ _Hallowed Ground_ ] spell while also under the effects of a [ _Desecrate_ ] field spell . . . but with you on the [ _Desecrate_ ] side of things and her on the [ _Hallowed Ground_ ] side.

[ _Hallowed Ground_ ] was a Tier IX field type spell that boosted all the stats of allies in its radius in a spherical AoE. In addition, it boosted spells, weapon skills, and other class traits and lowered their cooldown timers by a percentage.

[ _Desecrate_ ] did the exact opposite. It reduced stats, increased cooldown timers, debuffed spell powers and effects, weapon skills, and class traits. It also doubled weaknesses and vulnerabilities.

The frightening part was that as field spells, they could be [ _Permanency_ ] enhanced. Meaning that they could be forever be made a part of the environment. The only way to negate the effects was to use [ _Greater, Dispel Magic_ ] or a [ _Wish_ ] spell. However, Aureole could counter those two spells easily if she knew they were coming . . . and she was written to always expect that. One could imagine the incredible struggle it would be suffering from such debilitating debuffs and fighting a fully buffed enemy with powerful subordinates.

Never mind her spells and class abilities. She was the only human in Nazarick, and yet she was not quite human anymore either. She was an Immortal.

Here in this chamber, Draconis felt like he was the mouse before the lion. If she wanted to destroy him, she probably could with her ability to whisk him away via her control of the [ _Gate_ ] spell and into any of the death traps of Nazarick. Giving her respect and remaining friendly was in his best interests. Not that he wasn't going to do so anyway. He didn't have a death wish, nor did he have issues with the NPC.

"Lord Draconis. I thank you for coming to Nazarick at Lord Ainz's request. Before I send you to the Throne Room where he awaits you, I wanted to speak with you a moment."

His brow lifted in curiosity. This was new to him. One of the NPCs of Nazarick wished to talk to him specifically when he had no official titles to Nazarick proper? True, he was called The Exile at times, but that was more of a running gag for the members of Nine's Own Goal and later with the new Ainz Ooal Gown that he had maintained good relations with. Then he remembered that the NPCs would have constantly experienced their conversations and experiences in front of them like his own Lair's NPCs and Avalon's NPCs. In addition to what information had been written into them at creation, whatever they had witnessed as motionless NPCs being ordered or otherwise would now have been translated to actual life experience for them.

Part of him wondered what embarrassing stories their NPCs knew about them due to relaxed conversations in front of them during the YGGDRASIL golden days.

Recovering from his internal musings, he nodded once to her.

"Certainly Aureole Omega. What is it I can do for you?"

The youngest of the Pleiades sisters stood around Artorias's height at 165cm, or around five foot, four inches. He dwarved her easily at his 190cm, or just at six foot, two inches. She smiled up at him and he began to relax. Aureole Omega was naturally high spirited and rational, sometimes a bit too much so. If she had thought to bring him here of all places, then he had her trust. Few of any of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown came here. Stopping just shy of the blanket, he took a seat on the grass and folded his legs to get comfortable.

"I would like to know how you are doing. Ever since you returned to release Lady Esdeath from her confinement I had been wondering why it is you remained away for so long. Master Blue Planet and White Lace-sama always spoke to each other saying that it was nice to have a visitor every now and then."

"And you decided to emulate them in that regard? Is that why you've brought me here instead of simply sending me right to Momonga?" He frowned a bit and then asked while it was still on his mind. "Tell me Aureole, why is he calling himself Ainz?"

She nodded and beamed brightly.

"He desires to place the name of Ainz Ooal Gown throughout this New World in the name of searching out the other Supreme Beings."

Something cold and hollow blew through Draconis's being and up his spine at that information. He was not aware whether or not the others had even shown up on the final day of the servers due to the fact that – as far as Draconis himself knew – all the rest of the members save for Momonga and three others had permanently quit YGGDRASIL to move on in their lives. Even Touch Me had not been immune to that fact. If none of them were online, then the odds that they were also here in the New World was fairly certainly nil. Never mind the fact that other players that he was finding out like his brother-in-law and Lucia arrived here at completely different time slots in this world's history and if they were not a race with long life, were probably dead no matter how strong they had become.

Now he was beginning to really worry about what Lucia had mentioned about a racial shift changed a person's mental state and soul.

"I see. Any other reasons?"

"Demiurge mentioned that Lord Ainz saw the world like a jewel box and wanted to take it for the glory of Ainz Ooal Gown."

Color drained from Draconis's face.

 _World domination?! Momonga . . . no . . . Satoru Suzuki, what in the devil are you thinking? Were you even thinking when you told Demiurge of all the NPCs that? This world already has enough issues without powerful final boss like powers like us suddenly appearing. I really hope that you haven't changed_ that much _in just two weeks my friend. I need to know more details._

"He did not state this to all of you directly?"

Aureole Omega shook her head negatively.

"Demiurge stated that he heard Lord Ainz speaking of it as speaking to himself aloud."

 _Ah . . . that sounds more like him. Demiurge is probably twisting it out of his nature . . . which can become an issue in the future._

Aureole Omega smiled at him. Personally, she was satisfied knowing that Nazarick still stood and that Ainz had remained with them. Draconis's presence was a mixed feeling for many of Nazarick's denizens, but she rather enjoyed having his presence around. Aureole did not adhere to the heroics and all of the ethics like Lord Touch Me and by extension his creation, Sebas Tian. But she was not one who went out of her way to torment others like Demiurge or the Worst Ones. Never mind Neuronist Painkill. Even though Draconis leaned more toward Touch Me in similarly held beliefs, he was not so heroic as to try to save everyone. He would feel pained at not being able to help those that he could or knew truly needed help, but Draconis had been heard stating that he would only help those who both needed, AND wanted to be helped. He couldn't help anyone who did not wish to be. Some people did not deserve to be helped or saved either, but it took a certain set of criteria for him to go that far.

"So Lord Draconis? What do you think of this New World?"

"You want my honest opinion?"

Aureole nodded and motioned for her attendants to leave them. They both hesitated, but after a soft smile and wave, the two reluctantly excused themselves. Draconis mentally thanked her for her perceptive nature.

"I do Lord Draconis. Opinions among Nazarick's denizens are more of a singular camp, but as a former human myself, I see things a bit differently. 'Outside the box' I think the phrase was?"

"An apt phrase for your view Aureole Omega." Draconis sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. He thought with his eyes closed for a moment as he used over how to phrase his opinions. "I think this New World is a beautiful place with endless potential. Much like Midgard of YGGDRASIL. The human nations that I've seen thus far vary wildly in culture and power level, but both Nazarick and my Lair are home to beings so powerful that our lesser military forces might as well be legendary beings that cause national emergencies from just the appearance of one or two, much less organized divisions."

He frowned heavily as he continued. "The kingdom that I am rendering aid to is oppressed horribly by beastmen. While I do not know the capacities of the higher ranked members of these beastmen, I do not doubt that there are savages among them that would offend even Nazarick. I am not blind however, to the exception to the rule and that there could be a sound, and reasonable clique of them. The human nations are no different in that regard. That is something I will be speaking with Momo . . . Ainz if that is what he wants to be called now."

 _Damn I'm not going to be able to get used to that._

Aureole nodded as she followed along. She did not say anything, but he knew she was taking mental notes.

"It seems to me like not all of the human nations are unified in the defense of their own kith and kin. But when has human kind been able to do such a thing unanimously? Overall, I rather like the prospects and potential this New World possesses. I think we could all benefit from reaching out to the various races living here, but we must be careful in doing so. We are incredibly powerful here from what I have witnessed first hand. I know that others like Momonga and myself may have appeared, but garnering the world's fear and hatred would not be a good thing for any of us. No matter how strong we are, we are only so many."

 _Even though I say that, Nazarick fended off the largest player and NPC raid party ever created and none of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown actually did anything themselves to fight directly. If 1500 players and high level NPCs that would crush most things on this New World didn't even make it past the eighth floor here, then what does that say for anything or any nation ignorant enough to try? Hells, The Lair could fend off armies here and that's just due to the topography alone. Avalon should be safe unless it comes from carelessness. Which is always possible. Then there's stupid, plain old, dumb luck that lady fortune decides to troll us with._

Aureole Omega nodded slowly as she comprehended his words.

"So, please allow me to tell you what you told me in my own words to make sure that I understand what you mean."

He nodded in return but was surprised by such initiative from an NPC of Nazarick. He did not know all the little detail about every NPC, but he was fairly certain that as an Evil Guild, Ainz Ooal Gown did not make many of their NPCs flexible or frugal enough to make these kinds of thoughts and decisions on their own.

Oddly enough, some of the players . . . via their NPCs . . . had become just like the superiors they couldn't stand in real life. What an ironic twist. Though NOT ALL of them had. Many of them merely crafted what they desired to make. Yet he could not help but remember what his friend from Avalon, Merlin told him one day.

" _We become Gods of Ink. All our flaws and unconscious thoughts and feelings flow and breath life into the NPCs we make and tales we give them. We build worlds with pen and ink. What would happen when we become the tyrants and dictators? Shouldn't we give them hope, and not just despair? Love, and not just hate? Opportunity and a level of free will? That's what I think Draconis. But you seem to do that naturally without even thinking. I envy you for that gift. But maybe you just do because you've already been through those dark times and don't want others to go through what you did? Sorry, that was inconsiderate of me."_

Draconis smirked, then chuckled before erupting into outright laughter. Aureole stopped her recounting in shock and surprise. He laughed boisterously and long enough to make him clutch his sides and tears formed at the corners of his eyes. Aureole could only open and close her mouth a bit like a fish at his sudden outburst of laughter. She did not think she had said anything funny.

"Hahahah . . . oh. Merlin, you were on to something about me and the rest of our precious creations. What would you have thought of this whole situation? Ah. I'm sorry Aureole Omega. It was nothing that you said. I was lost in a memory from a good friend and compatriot. Could you repeat what you were saying. I'm terribly sorry for zoning out like that."

Aureole shook her head negatively again. She had gotten his overall meaning. They were all overwhelming powerful here. Discretion was better in his opinion, though it would not be shared by the majority of Nazarick. There were exceptions to the normal power levels of this world and they had yet to encounter them, and that helping those weaker than them would probably pay more dividends down the road than conquest.

While she did not agree with everything entirely, she did understand the logistical benefits and concerns. Wars were costly to both sides and left lasting scars that could become problems later down the road. The appearance of someone or something just as powerful as them at an inopportune time could be devastatingly bad, which also meant that drawing undue attention could also spur on the appearance of something they all might regret appearing in the first place. Logical reasoning to her if not completely worded exactly as she surmised.

"That's alright Lord Draconis. If there is anything else I wish to know or share, I will be in touch somehow. Might I request that Lord Ainz allow us to speak again in the future?"

Draconis tilted his head to the side in interest. Having an NPC like Aureole of all of them in secure communication could be invaluable. It could also be a double edged sword in the future, but it was a risk he could mitigate.

"I will speak with him about it. You had better send me onward. Time marches forward despite your being displaced from it Aureole Omega." He spoke of her immortality.

He stood from his sitting position as she nodded her understanding. They had been speaking for a while. Surely he would defend her action in delaying their meeting so she would not find herself in much trouble.

"Thank you very much Lord Draconis. Please tell Hazuki I've missed tea ceremonies with her."

He smirked at the little bit of information that her creator slipped into her background. Hazuki had not mentioned Aureole since their arrival here in the New World. Perhaps he didn't have to worry so much over Nazarick as he feared.

"I will pass on that message."

His words were met with a small, but energetic wave as he was transported via one of her [ _Gate_ ] spells.

* * *

 **Throne Room**

* * *

Ainz sat on the obsidian throne that was also one of the World Items of Ainz Ooal Gown gifted to them for conquering the level 85+ dungeon in a single attempt way back when. His skeletal fingers tapped a rhythm out as he waited for Draconis to arrive. To his side, Albedo ground her teeth even as she wore a patient and serene expression.

 _How dare he make our Supreme Ruler Ainz-sama wait! Ally or not, it is rude to keep someone as sublime as Ainz-sama waiting when he sends a summons!_

The [ _Gate_ ] opened and Draconis stepped out several yards from the throne itself. Before either Overlord Lich or Ascendant Dragon could speak, Albedo glared at The Exile.

"Draconis Brightblade, you of all people would make Ainz-sama wait when he summons you? Even if you were an ally of Nazarick such impropriety is!"

She could not get another word out for two pressures seemed to immediately crush her at her outburst. One she knew and was instantly remorseful at her actions. Ainz glared at her with shining crimson orbs in the hollows of his skull's eye sockets. Ainz's [ _Despair Aura III_ ] in full effect. Yet it was Draconis's glare of prismatic flaring orbs that made her swallow even more. His eyes had changed and alongside the prismatic orbs, his eyes shined with vertical pupils and crimson rimmed irises. The pressure he directed her direction was just as powerful as their Supreme Ruler's!

"Albedo." Ainz's voice was hard and left no room for disrespect or question. "If I am displeased with being kept waiting I will bring it up with whomever it is myself. Draconis is indeed an ally and we DO NOT treat our allies in such a manner. Am. I. Clear?"

Such fierce displeasure from Ainz made her shudder and nodded vigorously in despair. She dared not speak for fear of angering him further. Now she knew how Shalltear currently felt.

"Leave us. I will speak with Draconis alone."

Albedo could not leave fast enough. Catching a glimpse of Draconis out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that he did not even look at her, but at Ainz. Their auras not dimming in the slightest, and while Ainz's felt like it encompassed the whole room, Draconis's seemed to do the same and yet follow her like a eyeball. It wasn't until she was out of the throne room that their auras released their strangle hold on her. Once freed from their terrifying auras of power, she fell to her knees and began weeping. How could she ever make up for this failure?

Back inside the throne room, Ainz and Draconis lowered their respective auras. Ainz slumped in the throne he sat in while Draconis sighed heavily and shook his head in frustration.

"Where did that come from Momonga? I know our creations have become their own beings, but even then, they do have their settings and backgrounds. Was she always such a . . . a . . . well, you know." He did not wish to speak too poorly over other Ainz Ooal Gown member NPCs if he could help it.

"A bitch? A slut?" Tabula-san wrote that in her background as the very last sentence. Draconis wore a deadpan face with a raised eye brow as his only response. "That's what I felt. At the end of the server period, I changed it via the Guild Weapon and now she's like this . . . it was done as a joke!"

"Dare . . . dare I ask what you changed it to?" Draconis had a disturbing sense of dread over this.

"I wrote that . . . argh . . . I wrote that she loved me."

Utter silence.

 _Wow . . . that's . . . I don't even . . ._ Draconis cringed. "Now it's a reality . . . did you even read the rest of her background?"

Ainz buried his face in a boney hand. His eyes dimmed out of existence in humiliation. If they still had the emote system in play, Draconis would have sent a sweatdrop to express his unease at this situation. Probably the poo emoji as well for good measure.

"I probably should, shouldn't I?"

Draconis crossed his arms and shook his head in exhaustion.

"Not you should. You WILL. I think you've created even more of a monster than you can handle if things stay this way Momonga."

The Overlord agreed even as he mentally sighed and cringed. He'd never expected Albedo to lash out at a known ally and friend of Nazarick even if he was not of the members. As Draconis mentioned, he would have to read all of Albedo's background to make sure that he had indeed created a monster.

"You have a point Draconis. I will look into it. But by gods it's SO long."

Draconis gave him a look that seemed to say, "Try me."

"Momonga, I wrote all of the NPCs of The Lair and Esdeath as well. Tidbits of info and backgrounds seeped into other NPCs of both Nazarick and Avalon, my wife's guild. How long and interconnected do you think I wrote them? I've written effectively BOOKS on them . . . and I remember all of them. With the details written into them and their – now very real – lives with the blessings of their creators I've become like a god father to them. Or a very peculiar uncle at worst. They're like my kids and step kids, my family. How can we overlook that?"

Ainz nodded as he began to sympathize with the sentiment. They were family. Like the children of their respective creators. It was why his battle with Shalltear was his fault and responsibility to him. That thought brought him back to the very reason he had called Draconis here in the first place.

"I agree with you in that regard Draconis, but that leads me to the reason I asked you to come here."

He brought up a video replay crystal, but before it could start playing, Draconis lifted a hand to stop him.

"Momonga, not to delay this further, but are we really secure here in the throne room of all places?"

With a nod, Ainz opened a portal and the two entered it and reappeared inside Ainz's personal office. One of the homunculus maids cleaning the room shrieked a little at the sudden appearance of their great ruler and the exiled.

Waving off her profuse apologies, they excused her from her duties for a while. After the door shut, Draconis waited for a while until the footsteps faded from his ears. Nodding, he took a seat across the desk from Ainz.

"I won't beat around the bush with you Draconis. Someone managed to brainwash Shalltear Bloodfallen and I had to fight her to the death." Before Draconis could say anything, Ainz held of a hand to forestall him as he continued. "I have already resurrected her and the brainwashing is no more, but she remembers nothing from the time she acted on my orders to find people who could wield martial arts."

Given what both players knew of Shalltear, they knew mind control was normally impossible against her. It was then that Draconis remembered what Lucia had informed him of.

"I assume her being controlled is why you called me? How long ago was this?"

"Around three days ago. I'm being more cautious now in deploying the guardians. It was my fault I didn't take World Items into account. Be careful with your own NPCs if you're making use of them here in the New World."

"Thank you for your concern Momonga, but I've been informed of the existence of World Items from a very credible source. That being said, what steps are you taking to protect them?"

Ainz sat upright with pride and confidence. "I have given each of them one of Ainz Ooal Gown's World Items."

Draconis's mouth went dry as if he just stuffed a bag of cotton balls into it. His eyes were wider than saucers and a chill ran through his soul. The NPCs possessed World Items . . . ? All of the ones being deployed? How many of them were out and about? Their level of power was already beyond anything he thought would be found any where near civilization.

"Do you know who was responsible for Shalltear's control?"

"No, but I intend on being prepared for the worst."

Letting loose a controlled breath out his nose, Draconis looked straight into Momonga's empty sockets. Into the eyes of death incarnate now.

"I think you're overreacting." When no eruption of disagreement came, he continued. "Everything I've interacted with thus far has been less than high tier in our books as players Momonga. You know that anyone in YGGDRASIL could use a World Item if they found it regardless of level. If they really had control of Shalltear, why would they have left her for you to find, fight and defeat and then regain? I don't know if you've been out and about in this world much yet Momonga, but the power levels don't seem to match up to us much less our NPCs."

Ainz interlocked his skeletal fingers on the desk and shook his head.

"I would rather not risk this incident again. Surely you understand that?"

Draconis nodded empathetically.

"I do Momonga. I happen to know which WI would control Shalltear." Ainz sat forward at that bit and Draconis frowned. "Downfall of Castle and Country. A dress item I believe the last I heard of it. One cannot use it if they are not a magic caster, so many are put off by that alone. Nevermind that it is a dress, so many male players would not go for it either. Not only that but it takes time to cast the ability not too different than a weaker Super Tier Spell. It has a lot of negatives. Not to mention it can only affect a single target at a time."

"If you know all of that, do you know who it is who could have done this?" The anger in Ainz's voice was clear until a greenish aura made the skeletal Overlord calm down. The effect was not lost on Draconis.

"I do." When Ainz motioned to give him the answer, he held up a hand. "However I do not believe it wise to go after them without being ready. They have more than one according to my source. No where near as many as Ainz Ooal Gown. You guys still held the record for that. Still. I don't think they would deploy the WI's like a mook."

Ainz sat back in his chair and stewed over his friend's words for a moment. He made sense. Draconis was known for having a level head most of the the time. True, he could get emotional and irrational at times, but it was so rare that when it did happen, the rest of the people around him remembered it and the reason it happened. His time as the adventurer Momon supported Draconis's observations of the differences in power so far. Even he had told Naberal to not use higher than Tier IV in an emergency unless he specifically told her to do otherwise. Still he had to know something.

"Does that WI have unlimited range?"

Draconis shook his head.

"It must have line of sight and be within a certain distance. Overall it's actually pretty weak for a WI."

"Yeah. Now that you explain it like that, it is. At least it's not that damn ring that one guild used to block of an entire section of a world in YGGDRASIL to get at one of the seven hidden prismatic ore mines." Ainz muttered with a grumble. He was still sore about losing that one.

Draconis nodded sagely, but on the inside he was cringing.

The reality was that Merlin of Avalon had used Ouroboros and Avalon had raided the Celestial Uranium of those mines dry. He had helped, so he got a portion of it. Needless to say after he found out that Ainz Ooal Gown had been mining it previously, he did feel a _little_ guilty, but not by much. Needless to say that with Ouroboros being one of The Twenty, it disappeared after the month they had used it for. He was not going to dig up old issues like _that_ one here, so he kept silent.

Trying to get back onto topic, he cleared his throat with a cough.

"You said you raised Shalltear. How is she taking the news of having to fight you?"

"I told her that it is not her fault, that it was my own mistake and she need not feel guilty about it."

"Hrmm . . . though that may be true Momonga, do you think she'll really feel that way? Last I heard from Peroroncino, she is actually pretty harsh on herself despite her personality."

Ainz tilted his skull at an angle like a dog trying to get a better view with its limited vision due to its physiology.

"You think so?"

Draconis imitated his friend with a head tilt of his own, though he also wore a face of disbelief.

"I'm not even a formal member of AoG and know more than you do concerning their backgrounds. I know you were not heavy into role playing like me, or a few of the others like Bukubukuchagama, her brother, or others, but still . . . I believe knowing them as individuals and not just their stats, skills, and traits may help you in the future Momonga."

The Overlord nodded with an audible clacking of bones.

"I see. Great, now I'm even more stressed out!"

A genuine look of confusion broke over Draconis's face at Ainz's sudden panic.

"I'm afraid that if I do one thing wrong I'll lose faith from them. They all see me as this all powerful being. It scares me!"

Momonga, or Satoru Suzuki never would say these things out loud to anyone not a friend and a player. Not a single NPC of Nazarick would truly understand him if he did. Draconis had a lightbulb go off in his head as he realized what Momonga was getting at.

"Momonga, I won't sugar coat this for you, but you might be right." He pressed onward before Ainz could say anything. "But worrying over it won't help you. You are the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown regardless. You do not need to be perfect, just a good leader. Maybe that means you go with your subordinates wishes. Other times it means you need to buck up and drop the hammer on them for not just their sake, but others around them. It's not an easy role, and it's one I've had to fill more than I want to admit."

He smirked and laughed a little darker than Ainz had seen him do in years. Draconis could have a cynical and morbid sense of humor to him when he wanted to.

"If I'm right Momonga, some of them might even get a kick out of being dominated due to the theme of Evil you all took as a guild. Evil has many faces Momonga, but that's up to the person viewing you. Some people can't hack harsh treatment and label it as oppression, but the same could be true of being too lenient and compassionate. There has to be a balance. Even good people can be 'evil' when in reality they're just being strict, or harsh, but not intentionally bad."

Ainz had not thought of that. What Albedo had told him about Shalltear feeling absolved of her "crime" via being punished by him now made more sense. Ainz Ooal Gown had played themselves as an Evil Themed Guild who PK'ed a lot. That being said, it also gave him a new perspective of how to be an effective leader without becoming too stressed out over being a perfect being.

"Tell me something else Momonga, world domination? Really?"

Ainz's jaw fell open with a loud "CLACK".

 _Where did he hear that from?! I meant it as a joke and was just speaking my thoughts._

"Uh . . ." His apparent eloquent response was met with consternation from Draconis.

"Really? 'Uuuuhhhhhhhh' is the only response you have for me? You are aware that you have a habit of speaking your thoughts out loud. Certain NPCs could take that to be a serious consideration on your part as their leader and mistake it for an order. Then the next thing you know, you're up a creek without a paddle doing something you would rather not."

"Hahaha! But they haven't Draconis. I'm only learning about this New World by posing as the adventurer Momon in E-Rantel."

"Not according to Aureole Omega." Ainz paused dead in his reasoning.

"What?"

"Aureole Omega spoke with me while sending me your way. I asked her why the Pleiades and she were calling you by the guild's name and not your own. She answered that you took the name to spread it across the world in search of others like you and me and anyone of Nazarick who may have ended up here. When I asked her if there was another reason behind your name change, she answered that you had seen the world as a jewelry box and wanted to claim it for the glory of Ainz Ooal Gown to Demiurge. Demiurge took that literally as world conquest and has sent it down the line of NPCs and now they serve you for that purpose."

A deep pit opened up in Momonga's being. A NPC confided in Draconis about that? Demiurge had taken it as an order? He had been joking! It wasn't a serious comment.

"I wasn't being serious Draconis . . ."

"I believe you Momonga. But the NPCs . . . ? Remember what I just said about learning their backgrounds to avoid undue stress and problems? It's already coming back to bite you. Like I said, you have a habit of talking to yourself out loud and not realizing it. Many of the NPCs we've created both my own and those of Ainz Ooal Gown have near supernatural hearing and other senses. Especially since not a single one here is human."

Momonga cursed mentally. Draconis was right in that regard. He did get lost in his thoughts a lot. He would have to get a better grip on not mumbling while doing so. Demiurge would have to be the next one he would need to read up on. He was considered the most intelligent NPC in Nazarick. Ulbert had written him as utterly evil with his obsession with the word in all its aspects. Given how Draconis, Touch Me, and a few others had gotten into arguments with him in the past he wondered if the NPCs were like that as well. It really was like dealing with a new family.

He remembered how he'd kicked himself for taking Naberal with him instead of one of the other Pleiades as Momon when Naberal had taken no time or hesitation in stating that she despised humans as lower lifeforms even though she did follow orders. He had not read her background either. Draconis really was onto something.

"I understand Draconis. Thank you for enlightening me to this new perspective."

The man shrugged and smiled kindly.

"So long as you understand. That aside, I don't think you should be too hopeful about finding others like us. Those that are players like we are probably aren't members of Ainz Ooal Gown or Avalon."

"How can you be so sure Draconis?"

Draconis sighed and gave Ainz an apologetic look. He didn't like going this far, but better to nip it in the bud now rather than let it fester until the swelling started.

"Think about it Momonga. A lot of players stopped playing completely before the server shutdowns. Even my friends in Avalon had a few of them stop playing. Their accounts deleted, never to be opened again. I know that's especially true for Ainz Ooal Gown. Only four of you were left playing and only you Momonga, were on constantly. What did those that left the game do? You told me once. They deleted their accounts and gifted all their possessions to you to keep or sell or whatever. It's why you made the mausoleum in their honor right? To remember to days gone by?"

Having only gone through the treasury and mausoleum with Albedo only mere days ago, he knew that was true. Herohero had been the last player of the guild to log in other than himself and his friend had been so worn out from work that he had left before the server shutdown went into effect. Had he truly been so blindly hopeful? The cold hard logic Draconis wielded was like a hot knife through butter.

It angered him.

"Damn it!" Ainz slammed a fist into his desk. "How would you know Draconis! It isn't like you have the same thing happen to you!"

A dark growl of anger escaped Draconis's throat like Momonga had never heard before. The man's throat glowed orange and from between his teeth he swore he saw flickers of fire. It was then that he remembered that Draconis was a true dragon, one of only a hand full of YGGDRASIL players who did so.

"I could have lost my wife! Separated eternally from her would drive me mad! I lucked out when she didn't log out before the server shut down and send us here to this New World. Not all of Avalon's players are here either. True, I don't have all the friends I played with not here, but at least you have someone here. Be grateful for what you have, not what you want. I'm trying to help you Momonga."

"It's not the same!"

"You're right, it's not. But you haven't come here to find out that your brother also got sent here and is dead!"

That made Ainz stop cold. His anger forgotten.

"Your brother? I didn't know you had a brother that played. Only your wife."

Draconis sat back in his chair and growled, but it didn't have the heat that it did before.

"You know the rules, but didn't exactly follow them considering the griping about work IRL. A player's personal life IRL is just that. Personal. It's a taboo to ask such things online. It wasn't your business to know. But now it may as well because it will give you perspective into our situation. Brace yourself."

Ainz nodded as Draconis took a deep breath.

"The history of this New World we got sent to has seen players in the past according to my knowledge. Heroes and villains alike. The Six Great Gods who introduced Tier Magic . . . YGGDRASIL magic into this world. The Thirteen Heroes had a few, though they were much more than just thirteen, the historians excluded anyone not human. They fought epic beasts and terrors known as Demon Kings. The Eight Greed Kings were one of the guilds of YGGDRASIL and they warred against dragons here. Then at some point they turned on each other and killed each other. I suspect that these players were sent here at the time of the server shut down, but were sent here at different times in history. My brother-in-law, my wife's brother was sent here long ago, over two hundred years."

"Two hundred!?"

"Yes. He apparantly found a lover or wife and founded a nation far, far to the south. He was a lover of Japanese culture and so played as a Samurai and Sword Saint. Momonga, I have great, great, great, great grand nieces and nephews. He died over two hundred years ago to old age."

That information only reinforced Draconis's concern to not get too hopeful about encountering friends from the game. It disturbed him.

"So even if for some reason they did get sent here it may have been long ago, on another land entirely, or we may not even live long enough to see them in the future if they aren't even here yet . . . Damn."

"See? You do have mind that can figure it out if you try."

Ainz sent him a sharp look of irritation, but said nothing as he didn't put any real heat into it anyway.

"But how did you find out about this? That seems like a one-in-a-million shot."

"I didn't, but my wife did. Avalon had a visitor during her talks with one of the queens of this land's kingdoms. She claimed to be a descendant of my brother and even knew who they all were from tales and written text he left behind. He ordered them to never forget of his allies and friends in Avalon. Even I was mentioned. We're like myths become flesh to them. It was long ago for them, but they held him in such high regard that they remember what he said about us and so she wants to establish an alliance in honor of my brother's memory. My wife was pretty shaken by the loss of her brother. We were going to visit the nation he founded to pay our respects after we finished with our business here."

Not having family after losing his mother to overwork exhaustion, Ainz found himself oddly not envious of his friend's situation. Adjusting to this New World alone was frantic enough, but to have that kind of bomb dropped in your lap on top of all this? Now he felt kind of bad for shouting at Draconis.

"You were just telling me this so I could be ready for bad news like what you and your wife had handed to you. I'm sorry to hear that."

"You didn't know and I was pretty blunt and could have phrased it better. Apology accepted, though you don't need to."

The two men settled into a quiet peace as the air settled. A knock at the door drew their attention. Ainz spoke up as it was his office to begin with.

"Enter."

The door slowly creaked open.


	17. Chapter 15: Before the Storms

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official Light Novel releases.

* * *

 **Chapter 15: Before the Storms**

* * *

Draconis and Ainz waited as the door slowly opened to reveal Pandora's Actor. The greater doppleganger bowed before he entered the room.

"Ainz-sama. Lord Draconis. I bring you a report."

Bringing the documents to Ainz's desk, Pandora's Actor turned to Draconis.

"Lord Draconis, it is a pleasure to see you. I hope that you are faring well given our current standings in this New World?"

Draconis found Pandora's Actor to be a bit overly dramatic and corny to a point, but he'd witnessed worse. The yellow neo-nazi uniform made him chuckle. Despite the horrors of the Arcology War, it had sparked a craze in the Neo-Reich Regime that had risen from the chaos and death. How he had no clue, but he wasn't going to condemn the look, even if the views of the party were beyond twisted. A sharp uniform was still sharp.

He still preferred his own military uniform over it though.

"I could be better, but it could always be worse. It's unusual to see you away from your post."

The greater doppleganger struck a dramatic pose, his right hand in the air, the long, worm like fingers spread like a fan. The other hand poised over the chest as he lunged in place to the right, then the left, with his hands swapping places as he emphasized each word like a mantra. Draconis could make out Ainz face palming like a madman. No doubt he was regretting the decision to make him with that quirk because he thought it was cool.

"Ah, my glorious Father has allowed me to leave my posting for other jobs to be done around Nazarick."

Draconis thought it oddly appropriate that Momonga was being called Pandora's father.

"Indeed. If you don't need anything else at the moment Momonga, I have business I still need to take care of."

The Overlord nodded and Draconis stood from his seat.

"Also, Aureole Omega wished for me to ask you if she could keep in touch with me in the future."

The idea took Ainz by surprise.

"I don't see why not. I am curious as to why she would ask you that kind of request though."

Draconis shrugged and smirked.

"She was written with a connection to one of my other NPCs. Probably just wants to keep in touch with her somehow."

"Umu. That's fine then. Take care Draconis. Good luck on whatever it is you're working on."

The man nodded before willing a [ _Message_ ] to Aureole to transport him out of Nazarick. As he was transferred out of the home of Ainz Ooal Gown, he passed on Ainz's approval of Aureole Omega's request to her and she smiled in gratitude.

Arriving on the surface of the First Floor, he walked quietly out of the gates as if enjoying a morning stroll. Breathing deeply, he cast [ _Greater, Teleportation_ ] to return to Arwinter.

Back in his office, Ainz began to reorganize his thoughts concerning the threat of World Items. Before he could get into the meat and potatoes of the report Pandora's Actor had given him, a lightbulb went off and he mentally swore.

"I forgot to ask him who has the World Items . . . I'll have to remember to ask him again the next time. I took enough of a risk with sending him a [ _Message_ ] this last time. Better to not do that again if I can help it. I can't afford to send a messenger either at this time. Guess I'll make a note of it when I don't have everyone spread so thin."

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **-Castle Study Chambers-**

* * *

Draudillon sat at a desk looking over reports that she had received about the drastic changes that swept through the organizing of militia and army forces. Draconis had a very thorough organization to his military divisions and soldier designations. Yet the battle formations that so many were used to in their nation and that of their neighbors hardly existed. Yes, formations that she was vaguely familiar with were listed, but they were not being used as she would have thought them to. Apparently that confusion of her part also extended to what few military advisors she had left.

Many of his formations and battle strategies relied on remaining ever mobile and concentrated on smaller, more independent groups he called squads. Several of these smaller groups would fight in concert, yet independent of each other. One of her advisors touted it as ludicrous, yet another had seen the merits of quickly being able respond as they saw fit to help their allies instead of relaying mass orders that took too long.

The larger formations were for defensive battles and still employed squads acting separate from the main force as an assassin like strike group. These groups would penetrate back lines and strike at leadership elements and others would destroy supply lines and other support elements.

These special squads of elites were what he wrote down as "Strikers". She found the title fitting. Samael mentioned to her that he commanded The Lair's Guardians and that they were not a formal part of Draconis's military power, but literally guardians of their home. The two sisters, Akame and Kurome were part of Draconis's personal "Striker" Team. The average Stiker Team was six people.

When she asked who was part of Draconis's "Striker" Team, Samael had replied with a small smile.

" _He trusts Lady Akame and Kurome as his attackers and seekers. Normally a Striker Team consists of a number of 'roles'. Someone able to keep the enemies attention and anger focused upon them. We call it a 'Tank'. 'Attackers' vary between physical and magical, ranged, and melee. Though some can perform both ranged and melee. A 'Seeker' hunts down weaknesses and any hidden traps, reinforcements, or leaders in the opposition and relays that information to the rest of the team. If need be, they can run interference and even strike at critical members. Of course, a 'Healer' is required should things turn ugly. Then there is the 'Wild Card'. A member of the party that can adapt to every situation possible, or has some special ability that separates them from the normal, making them unpredictable in the team when fighting them."_

She had thought Draconis to be this "Tank" role as he had defended with technique unseen in his duel with Cerabrate. Samael and chuckled at her, but not berated her for her assumption.

" _No Your Majesty. Lord Draconis is his 'Stiker' Team's Wild Card. Who would think a man able to transform into a dragon? He wields sword and shield and magic alike as well. Though I have heard him state that when he is with the Queen of Avalon, he takes on the role of the Tank."_

Given what she knew thus far of the members of The Lair and Draconis, if the dragon took on the role of the "Tank" to give away the apparent flexibility of his abilities and skills to the Queen of Avalon, who was she? Samael's words also implied that Avalon's ruler took to the field of combat when they went to battle. What did that portend about her powers? If Draconis took the role of a guardian, how powerful was this queen? The thoughts made her tremble.

 _Who . . . or rather what kind of ruler is she to command the likes of Draconis? What kind of power does Avalon possess to have someone like him serve their ruler?_

Pushing that impossibly heavy implication aside, she refocused on their discussions.

"Your Majesty, these forces that Draconis sends to aide us are unlike anything that any of us have ever seen before. They all wear clothes and armor that have a constant style and function, yet their quality out matches even the most affluent noble's guard. Surely they cannot have the skills to match."

Another noble shook his head in disagreement and frowned heavily at his peer.

"I would watch your tongue. A number of my guardsmen challenged a young woman belonging to their number. One of their . . . what did they call her? Soldier First Class? A middle ranked fighter among the number of white and brown haired fighters with lavender eyes. He was a Mythril ranked adventurer and she waylaid him like a greenhorn."

Several eyes went back to the lists and papers before them and each of them looked back over the "Rank" structure that they had been given.

Draconis's troops were highly organized, yet condensed and concise. Initiates did not fight, but were in training. Squires were something they were all informed of to some kind of degree. From there it progressed into a two rank Soldier level. Soldier 2nd Class and Soldier 1st Class with the First Class being higher of the two. Then the title of Knight appeared, denoting an officer. Knight advanced further into Knight Commander, then Lord. Beyond that lofty title was the rank of Lord Commander.

So it progressed as follows: Initiate – Squire – Soldier 2nd Class – Soldier 1st Class – Knight – Knight Commander – Lord – Lord Commander.

There were sub titles and ranks based upon duty while serving as whatever rank they held, but that was going deeper into a rabbit hole. It seemed like special titles were earned based upon accomplishments and abilities displayed within their sphere of influence. Many of them referred to their Liege Lord Draconis as "Knight Most Heavenly". They wondered if the Queen of Avalon which many of them hailed from as their homeland had granted the title to the man. There were also whispers at times from these soldiers and knights that Draconis had several peers with titles like: "Sky Valkyrie Gareth", "Dark Knight Mordred", "World Champion Lancelot", "Grand Magus Merlin", "Virtuous Galahad", "Knight of the Sun Gawain", and others.

"Surely you jest sir. An Orichalcum could fight with one of these yes?"

Another negative shake of the head went around the tables. Another noble stood and she gestured sharply at the papers before them. She stood in the same camp as Baron Whitepeak. Her province was barely holding on and she had a group of Orichalcum adventurers helping her. They had balked at the reinforcements they had received from Draconis's troops. Fifty of these white and brown haired fighters had arrived shortly after the decree had been received.

"I do not think it fair or wise to underestimate these warriors and mages of Lord Brightblade. My province has already seen reclamations of land and villages under their protection. The orichalcum team I had there did not take lightly to there assistance at first and issued a challenge of arms. It was four against a single squad leader and his second. The two left the adventurers in the dust."

She grit her teeth as she still remembered that fight.

* * *

 **Province Town**

 **-Town Square (Two Days Ago)-**

* * *

Her people had gathered in the town square and while a few of Lord Brightblade's troops watched, the majority of them remained on patrols and at watch stations along the outskirts of the town. That only the squad members of the group that had been voted by the Knight Commander and his second were watching was a credit to their discipline and impartiality. The Knight Commander and Knight were each out on individual patrols.

To her the gesture was a testament to the amount of professionalism and trust instilled into their comrades. The four remaining squad members stood at attention at the edges of the area set aside for this fight. Each of them had taken to different points, forming a loose diamond. They wore their uniforms of white, fading to blue with black bottoms. Sections of armor adorned some of them while others wore none. Namely their mage.

The Orichalcum team was named Purple Talon for their purple scarfs and the curved blades their leader wielded. They had taken offense to received aid from apparent foreign power. When he had called out her decision to accept the assistance, she had presented the argument that to take back what the kingdom had lost would require aide from outside the nation, the group questioned Draudillon's decision.

The Knight Commander had stepped forward with both assurances that they would not impose upon the people under her rule nor take advantage of them. He had also presented the papers that reaffirmed the agreements decided upon by the Dark Scale Dragon Lord herself and Draconis's commanders: Samael, Hazuki, and Tod. They had held Draudillon's seal. The group had grimaced and demanded a test of strength. The Knight Commander had reluctantly agreed under the condition that it not be to the death and that it not be either him or his second.

To that end, the squad leader and his second were a young man and woman. They looked barely older than nineteen. He had wielded a normal looking sword with no shield or weapon in his off hand. The young woman held no weapons at all. When they had declared the start of the match, the young woman had disappeared from view before reappearing behind the Purple Talon's fighters and mage and knocking them all unconscious with a single chop to each of their necks after hitting them each in the back of the knees to force them down to her level.

She had declared her part in the fight finished and walked to the edge of the makeshift arena to watch her leader. The man had stepped forward with a salute they had all seen done by any sword wielder of Draconis's forces. Held with both hands upright at chest level, he kissed the hilt of the blade he wielded reverently before raising it high and slashing down with one swift, practiced stroke. The blade gleamed in the light.

With the duel already begun, the leader of Purple Talons rushed the rooted squad leader, a rush of strikes followed as he came within range. The soldier of Draconis's forces sidestepped and deftly parried anything he did not dodge with the agility of a fencer. The sword gleamed and shined as he moved to block and parry as he skirted around the town square, never fully disengaging from the melee.

Eventually, the leader of Purple Talons slipped trying to break the young squad leader's defense. The soldier took full advantage of the mistake. Reaching in with his free hand, he grabbed hold of the man's shirt collar and yanked him forward, bringing him into a brain rattling headbutt to the nose, breaking it with a sickening crunch. It was immediately followed up with a knee strike to the stomach and an overhead, double handed pommel smash to the top of the skull. Smashed into the dirt, the soldier placed the blade at the back of the neck of his challenger and declared victory. No one had questioned it. The fact that his squad mates immediately set about healing the man while he was unconscious before excusing themselves back to their duties was perhaps more telling than the two members of their frontline soldiers fighting ability.

There had been no exultation by his fellows at his win, nor deriding comments about this having been a waste of time. Only duty and concern for the protection of her residents. The Knight Commander and his second had reappeared as the squad departed and informed them that the squad was to return to station as the Knight Commander himself had picked up the slack for his squad's distraction.

She had been stunned that a commander would do such a thing. The man had informed her that she should select a representative to speak on her behalf and that she was needed back in the capital. He had a young woman unravel a scroll and stand by. After she had found someone and returned to them, they had [ _Teleportation_ ] magicked her back to the capital. The experience had both surprised and terrified her. What kind of military did Lord Draconis command?

* * *

 **Capital (Present Day)**

* * *

"Lady Veronica, surely Draconis cannot have a force where his basic troops are stronger than Mythril class adventurers. Where would a military force of such power be and not ever once be noticed by the world?"

Draudillon spoke up at the skepticism.

"I believe that Draconis and his forces have been elsewhere in the world, perhaps on the far continent of Chrysanthemum or perhaps another one entirely. They were brought here via a failed magical transportation. Avalon, his homeland, is far from here and we have never heard of the Queendom before now. It could very well be one of the ancient kingdoms dating before the time of the Eight Greed Kings."

Several cries of indignation went around the table from both camps.

"What?"

"Chrysanthemum's nations had never been in contact since the destruction of the kingdom that tried to expand their conquest!"

"If they were one of the ancient nations why didn't they oppose the Eight Greed Kings?"

Baron Whitepeak frowned and rapped the table several times with a gauntleted hand. The sound shook those gathered from their consternation. He was dressed in armor for having to prepare to return to his lands and people who were still likely fighting with assistance from Wyvern Rider lands. He was becoming anxious at his people's well being. He knew these discussions were important, but he needed to get back to his people, friends, and family.

"That's enough everyone!" His voice rang clear in the room. "The majority of us were present during Lord Brightblade's appearance in the throne room the day our Queen called us to her. We felt the power he could bring to the forefront. The Lady Lucia is also just as much his equal and the brief exchange they had before us was more than sufficient to convince me that they could both bring forth even stronger troops if need be. We should be grateful for a man of such power who has no inclination of becoming a tyrant or demanding payment for his assistance."

A number of the gathered people sat back down in their seats with either disgruntled mutters or nods of agreement. The damage in the throne room was still present as they had not the means or time to repair it.

"It is clear to me that Lord Brightblade is not human if his transformation in the throne room and knowledge of Your Majesty's blood is any indication. Who am I to second guess a being so powerful yet willing to assist those so far beneath him in power? We should be grateful that such a being is willing to help us and offer us the means to do so."

"Then tell us Baron, if he is so powerful, then why does he not wipe the threat of the Beastmen from our country himself? He proffers aide and support but tells us to raise up our own forces and fight ourselves."

Baron Whitepeak bristled at the man questioning him.

"Can you not see it with those dim eyes of yours?" The insult drew indignant looks from several, but not all. "If he were to do it himself, we'd become reliant on his forces. Let us assume he is not acting purely in an altruistic nature. Let us say he is doing so to fulfill his own ego. What does it gain him? His forces are separated from their homeland, no soldier doesn't think of home at some point. It is suicide to keep fighting for a foreign nation no matter how noble without the promise of going home. His forces would mutiny. Secondly, with their return home in mind, once they leave, where are we? The beastmen will try again if a solid conclusion is not reached, and the second invasion will be even more brutal than the first. If you ask my opinion, we are being allowed a chance to strengthen ourselves without destroying ourselves in the process by receiving his aide. We must be able to rely on our own power if we are to survive and the kingdom is to keep existing."

The man and his supporters began to speak again but Whitepeak marched on.

"Don't tell me none of us have felt it? The strain of having to pay tributes to Baharuth and the Slane Theocracy for aide that barely even covers the protection our people need. They say that they understand the threat because they are next when we fall, but instead of armies they send the dregs of their forces who don't even fight to the death for us! They are staving off our deaths, but for what?!"

Whitepeak slammed a fist on the table. Papers and ink wells bounced and rattled. The young baron grit his teeth so hard that those sitting next to him could hear it.

"They see us as a buffer, a bump and delaying action before they come under the same threat. All the while the Theocracy wages their war against the Elven King. The Empire wages its annual wars to take lands from Re-Estize. The way I see it, we have two choices. Either stand and fight for all we're worth to preserve our lives, or let karma take the Theocracy and Empire and roll over for the Beastmen."

Everyone present including Draudillon balked at his words.

"That statement is treason Baron Whitepeak!"

"I would rather die than roll over!"

Whitepeak nodded as he stood from his chair. Grim determination burned in his eyes as he glared at everyone present save their queen.

"I would smite myself in the neck with my sword before I roll over and let the beastmen ravage my home, my friends, my family. Forget the suspicions and under the table bullshit about our current benefactor until the aftermath of our nation's liberation! This is our home's survival, never before have I seen our people, young and old, have their eyes shine with the light of hope and survival instead of despair and resignation! Why do you squander this time?! Stand . . . STAND DAMN IT!"

A majority of the men and women present did so with an alarming resolve for Draudillon. It seemed like she had just found the man from her own kingdom to serve as a beacon to rally around. She knew she had sensed something special in the youth when she had named him Baron. It was showing now and he held a drive and poise, a raw, eager, and wild passion and determination that drew others into it and grew in power. He was a good thinker too, she could see the small, infinitesimal smirk that crossed his features as the rest of his colleagues began chattering among each other about how to rally and best utilize the assistance they were receiving from Draconis.

Not wishing to disturb their sudden rejuvenated and focused proceedings, she quietly excused herself and left the room. As she closed the doors behind her, she made her way to her personal study, ignoring the calls of maids and butlers with a small wave and smile. Upon making it to her study, she closed and locked the doors.

Falling to her knees, she began to weep openly. Her cries muffled to the outside world by the enchantments encasing the chambers. Tears of frustration, confusion, and even joy poured down her face as she clenched fists to her chest. In all her years, she finally felt like something blessed would happen to her kingdom, for her people. Yet for all her attempts, it had finally come about by the arrival of an outsider. Her people were finally beginning to stand on their own. Perhaps one day . . . no, they still needed her for moment. Later . . . Later she could . . .

A hand offered her a handkerchief and she violently started as she looked up. Her tears and snot whipped shamefully about as she beheld Samael with a solemn look and cloth in his hand. How long had he been here? Did he come in after she did?

She remembered then . . . that she had given him permission to use the study as their advising and council room when privacy was needed. She had not counted on him being in the room when she lost her composure. Attempting to make herself proper again, she stopped when his free hand gently held her own from smearing her tears and other drips.

The Shadow Dragon Blooded warrior said no words to her as he knelt on the floor in front of her and wiped her tears and cheeks. His eyes never left hers as he cleaned her face with a cautious care that she did not think possible from someone with so much apparent battle experience. Cradling her face in a calloused hand, Samael merely stared into her eyes with a depth of experience that she could practically feel now that her powers were growing stronger. His pulse could be felt through his palm and fingertips on her jaw. Steady and strong, calming.

Her eyelids felt exceedingly heavy and she could feel herself drifted off. The stresses of leading and the concern for her people were finally catching up to her. Part of her was barely aware of being caught by the Commander of The Lair's Guardians and softly lifted. He placed her on the sofa in the room before quietly removing her shoes and placing them at the foot of it. Sleeping with them on would cause her problems later. Retrieving a light blanket, he covered her in it, ensuring that she would not catch a chill before placing an enchanted decanter of water with a glass on the desk in front of the sofa for when she awoke.

Samael took a single look at the papers and work he had been reading over before her sudden entrance and loss of composure. Shaking his head with a small grin, he made a mental note to continue it later. Draudillon was clearly pushing herself harder than she herself even knew. The mental fatigue was obvious.

He left the room as quietly as he could, thanking the gods that the door was instilled with well oiled hinges. Closing it, he found Kurome and Akame giving mischievous grins before sobering a little and nodding to him in silence. He returned it and began to walk down the halls, Kurome remained at the door as a silent guard. Akame walked with him, but said nothing.

"Thank you." His words were low, but sincere.

Akame just nodded and patted her friend on the back as she walked with him.

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **-Tildeus-**

* * *

Cecilia von Houten sat in a chair at the outdoor pavilion enjoying the cooling late summer air as the villagers of Tildeus went about their daily business. When Draconis had requested her to remain and continue to protect Tildeus for the time being, she had agreed. A force of forty-eight homonculi soldiers and their Knight Commander and a Lord were assigned to her command. Among the forty-eight subordinates were eight Knights, one for each squad. The groups had split their camps and tents into a octagon formation around the village. She herself had her private yert placed off center of the village square, allowing them all to report to her in equal time if [ _Message_ ] wasn't possible.

Regular reports from her comrades via the [ _Message_ ] kept her and the others apprised of the situation at the capital. She had been rather concerned with the appearance of Lady Lucia and the duel with Cerabrate, but rather than worry terribly over it, she delved into something she rather enjoyed.

Teaching children.

Many of the children were close to coming of age. Truly young ones were few, like Lilina. The little girl had taken such a shine to Cecilia, her parents had apologized to no end. It amused her to see such a energetic child so eager to learn. She would hold lessons of various subjects during the mornings after morning meal while parents and adults worked their fields or other crafts for the day. They seemed to enjoy the history lessons the most, believing many of them to actually be fantastical tales when she knew them to be actual events. Some of them she had glossed over the gritty details, others she had omitted due to inappropriate content for young ears. She had told both sides of certain tales, especially when a young one would decry one side as utterly evil or bad. Some of them had been, but others had a blurred line, and she had emphasized looking at the other side too.

Not all of them understood this of course. They were all still so young, but the seed was planted regardless, whether or not it took root was up to the children themselves.

Dismissing the children for the midday meal, she heard footsteps approach her from behind. Turning around she saw Aarik walking her way with a smile. The scholar had talked with her on a number of topics and as much as she learned from him about the Dragon Kingdom's history and the history of this New World, the more she began to understand just how out of place they were. Draconis had been right to test the waters with lower powers and lesser abilities.

"Mr. Aarik. How fare you this day?"

"I'm well Lady Cecilia. It's nearly midday meal, would you care to join me?"

Thinking on it for a moment, she shook her head negatively.

"I appreciate the gesture, but I've a meeting with the officers over lunch. If you will excuse me."

She bowed slightly and excused herself as she walked away to meet with the Knight Commander and Lord. As she walked away she frowned. Aarik had been asking questions concerning magic and how far they went. She enjoyed discussions on magic theory and its applications, but knew very intimately the dangers of ill use. Her husband shared a scar with her because of a magical creation gone awry. It covered her midsection and his right arm where he had tried to stop the explosion to little effect.

Aarik's curiosity was becoming dangerous despite her warnings. She had reported her concerns to Chronos, and the Seraphim had taken note. She knew he was being watched by wards the angel had serving him. Still, she wished that this awkwardness would either hurry up and fade, or boil over. This state of in between unnerved her.

"Lady Cecilia, good day." The Knight Commander saluted her as she entered the huge tent where they held their meetings.

Built with multiple layers for the roof and walls, the materials diffused heat when warm and kept warmth in when cold. A permanent spell of the wind element kept a fresh, light breeze circulating, yet light enough to not blow documents and other lighter objects off the table at the center.

"Good day Knight Commander. The Lord?"

"Over here my lady. Tea?" The man held a pot of fresh brewed tea. A small pot of chilled milk and platter of sugar cubes sat close by. If she was seeing things correctly, there was also a jar of honey to go with it. A small smile crossed her lips.

"That sounds wonderful. Thank you."

The man poured her a cup and added whatever milk and sugar or honey she desired. She took up her business mood after taking a relieving sip of the hot beverage.

"So what was this about beastmen scouts that one of the squads found from the eastern side of the village?"

The Knight Commander pointed to a map on the table. It was far more detailed than the one Aarik had provided days before. She had ordered two of the squads to head out with cartographers and more accurately draw out a map of the surrounding areas within twenty miles. Utilizing [ _Fly_ ] and techniques learned from their service to Avalon, the entire process had taken three days.

The river to the south was actually a mile and a half away, not two. The hills the west were larger than they had been told. The forests to the north and north east were significantly larger than first believed. Foothills leading to the mountains that The Lair rested within were beyond the forest to the north.

A marker piece like something one could find in a chess set rested to the east of the village of Tildeus on the map. Their own forces were simple bars of blue to represent a squad per bar.

"Ma'am. The scouts were spotted before they approached the village at the location of the raiders that you and your fellow Guardians assaulted over a week before now. They were searching about for what we believe to be evidence of who or what decimated their band. After they watched Tildeus for a day or so, they retreated."

"I see." She sipped her tea again. Either one of two things were going to happen now. The village would either be left alone, or a new, larger force would appear in search of revenge. She was glad for her liege's foresight in deploying their troops to help defend Tildeus after he left to meet with the queen of the Dragon Kingdom. "Keep the scouts keen to attempts to flank and approach Tildeus from a different direction. Keep half of our forces on night watches and we shall rotate night shifts with them so that we retain a commander at all times."

The two men nodded acceptance of her orders before sitting down at the side table that held various small sandwiches and cookies with chilled juice. Relatively simple fare, but filling yet light.

The village of Tildeus did not have enough of a population to have an effective militia and as such, they did not have many people who could learn to defend the village. Leaving the village alone would only see them decimated by vengeful beastmen if they learned of the previous raiders' fates. Which was now very likely to happen if they had not been here.

Even though they carried on small talk about what their families in Avalon were possibly doing, Cecilia held on to the sinking feeling in her gut that something loomed dark on the immediate horizon.

* * *

 **Outside Tildeus**

 **-? Miles-**

* * *

Sitting on the back of one of the beastmen who had brought the unfavorable news of the destruction of one of his raiding parties, one of his better ones at that, was a badger shaped beastman with matted and rankled fur. He was in a foul mood and the cluster of beastmen crumpled on the dirt before him was a sign of that mood. The other signs were of the dying young woman moaning on the ground as her younger brother screamed bloody murder. He had bitten her in half and her innards reeked to the humans within the vicinity that they had brought as provisions. He was going to eat the boy, but in some weird sentiment that he did not care about offered herself so long as her brother didn't get eaten.

He didn't care, he'd eat the boy tonight starting with that insufferable throat of his that rankled his ears. He crewed on her leg bones as he grumbled. How did one of his best raider packs get completely wiped out by such a small pack of food? What food bit back at them? Humans were cattle and nothing more. Other animals were a pain in the ass to hunt. Humans however, were slow, weak, and condensed when found. They liked to pen themselves in like the cattle they were. Ripe for the taking. Females were especially tasty, but men were more gamey. He didn't care, food was food whether they bleated like refuse or not.

Wiping his fur, stained with the young woman's blood, dying piss and shit, he relished the smell of terror that seasoned his food. Yet for all of what he normally indulged in, this group of humans that could fight only served to anger him more.

The latest scout returned and took a knee.

"Khan Terramist, I have new details on the humans of that village pen. They are fully surrounded by a force of warriors that all wear matching clothes and remain on guard around the whole village pen. They are always watching."

"Another stinking band of adventurers eh? How many?"

"Over forty."

That news made the others around him glance back and forth at each other in a bit of trepidation and fear. Over forty? That was far, far more than anticipated. For such a small pen of humans it made no sense. Terramist scoffed.

"We've nothing to fear from this food. My magic and our power will trample them like dirt. We attack at nightfall."

As the rest of the beastmen with him scattered, he stood from his seat and kicked the beastman acting as his seat literally out of his area. The failed scout whimpered as her bones broke and she limped away as Terramist yanked the boy up.

"Time for dessert." The sound of a gargling throat and flesh ripping came from his yert.

All across the camp of beastmen, screams and terror resounded as they feasted on humans for dinner. The smell of blood and refuse was heavy. The perfume of Terramist's choice.

He was too busy enjoying the boy's flesh to notice that the beastman he had brutally beaten had begun limping in the direction of Tildeus. She had had enough.

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Chronos had noticed this badger like beastman and his band of raiders making their way to Cecilia's posting at Tildeus while scrying around the Dragon Kingdom as troops were deployed to assist their new neighbors. During this time, he had grit his teeth and restrained himself from intervening in the brutalities he was witnessing. He knew that he could save all the humans still alive by himself by appearing from above and laying to waste all these savages. Even the children were not spared gorey and appalling deaths.

Yet he knew that by doing so, he would likely be worshipped by those he saved. He was an angel, not a god. Worship was not reserved for him. He did not desire it either, it was awkward and ill suited him. As a celestial servant, he knew that other problems would arise by swooping in on emotions alone. He prayed for the afterlife of those dying horrible deaths being eaten alive and terminated his spell. He had seen the beastman female's abuse as well.

Pondering a moment, he nodded to himself and summoned one of his lesser angels. A single Principality of Peace answered his call. The sky blue and white adorned angel awaiting its instructions.

"Watch over that beastwoman heading toward the village. Ensure that our forces there know that she is not a threat anymore and that you are its guardian for the moment. Ensure that she doesn't die of her wounds, but do not make yourself known to her."

The angel bowed and disappeared to carry out its task. He knew that Cecilia would get the message when her forces saw one of his subordinates following the beastwoman. An alarm went off in his mind and he switched his attention to the only two entrances of The Lair. At the main entrance, was a group of people dressed in both armor and climbing gear. He didn't recognize this appearance as Dragon Kingdom, Wyvern Rider, or Baharuth. Their vestiments reeked of that last location that had his liege on edge. The Slane Theocracy.

He frowned, he had blocked off Thousand Eyes Astrologist completely after reprimanding her . . . had she used a World Item to discern their location? Was this just dumb luck? Regardless, there was six of them. They did not include Zesshi Zetsumei among their number, in fact none of them looked like Black Scripture members from what he had divined days ago. Interesting.

He called up The Bunny. Said furry companion and cute death trap squeaked an acknowledgement and hopped to his defensive location within The Lair. He also called Samael via [ _Message_ ].

" _Yes Chronos?"_

"Samael, The Lair has visitors from the Slane Theocracy. It may be coincidence, but I'd like someone other than just myself and The Bunny here."

" _Very well, Hazuki is on her way back now. I'll inform our liege."_

"My thanks good friend."

He smirked at the caution and wonder crossing the faces of their uninvited guests. As per the rules of engagement, they were obviously sentient, so killing was out of the question if they could avoid it. How long would they evade capture though? Making a thorough scanning spell preparation he sent out the lockdown advisory to all The Lair's residents and began to prepare his active defenses.

It was time to play dungeon master.

* * *

 **The Lair**

 **-Outside Entrance-**

* * *

Amelia Lumiere headed up this group from the Clearwater Scriptures. Specialists in infiltration and espionage, they had been sent here under the table by Thousand Eyes Astrologer herself. When she had mentioned that an angel with its own will had been spying on them and that she needed to know just what a divine being was doing on the surface instead on among the heavens, she and her team had been first to be brought to her attention.

The only things they had been told was that it was an angel of apparent immense power and that he had told Thousand Eyes that he would "be in touch". Never had they heard of anyone or anything stopping the divinations of Thousand Eyes. She was curious as well. Even though they all were trusted infiltrators of the Clearwater Scriptures, she herself was not particularly religious or pious. She had taken this mission up mainly out of curiosity.

Several of her teammates had berated her for it as usual, but they were all more pious that she was by leagues.

It had taken them all several days of hard travel to arrive in the mountains and two more days of arduous climbing to find this entrance that Thousand Eyes had described to them.

It looked like nothing spectacular. Could a high ranking angel really be living in here? They had detected alarm and security spells at the entrance, but they had not been anything beyond what they had seen before on previous jobs. However, upon entering in a spread out formation, they gasped.

"What in the world?"

One of her team members utterly in breathless tones as they took in the worked stone and aesthetic lighting. The polished stones were like what they would find at a sacred temple to the Six Great Gods back home. The tunnel was not terribly huge, being fifteen feet across and maybe twenty feet tall. Yet the murals on the walls and even ceiling in some sections told them something else resided here.

"What have we stepped into?"

"I have no idea Left Ramrod." The man shrugged in response. He was the team's strong arm, and a monk known for his killer left punch. Thus the nickname.

The murals drew their attention again. It showed a cave outside of a massive crystal tower, from the cave entrance were figures of humans with hands raised as if in praise. The nest mural showed what looked like a throne room with a queen at the seat of power with many knights and mages. Further down was a depiction that made them swallow. Dragons, innumerable by the mural that was covered in them with a different castle fending them off in bloody and horrible combat.

The next one did not help matters of dread as they saw that the queen and her knights did not stand with the humans and other human like races against the dragons, but with them as allies. Seven massive dragon forms dwarved all others fighting one of their own with the help of the queen and her knights. Yet something else caught their eye.

"Hey, this one has another knight and he's more detailed." Amelia and the others gathered in front of it. It was true. There was another knight not seen before. He fought one of the seven in some kind of trial if the mural's depiction of combat followed by some kind of ritual was any indication.

Before they could look over any of the other murals however, a noise drew their attention. The entire group downed potions of [ _Invisibility_ ] and waited. What bounced into view made them tense even more.

A white rabbit, a bunny hopped into the center of the hallway and stared right in their direction. Its nose twitched and the whiskers flicked about. They cursed the luck, even if this bunny could not see them, it could still smell them. But it was the oddity of a bunny this high up in the mountains of a cave like this that made them nervous. Something about it just felt downright, bone chilling wrong.

The bunny hopped back the way it came after a short time and they relaxed, releasing held breaths.

"How did that scare us more than getting detected by demi-humans of the Beastmen or demons?"

Everyone shook their heads in confusion. What in the world was with this place? It was then that they heard it. The sounds of doors slamming shut from the direction they just came in from.

A voice rang clear throughout the tunnel and the team swallowed.

"Welcome to The Lair. My liege has left me clear instructions to visitors. I will be your guide. Please proceed onward."

Amelia and Left felt their dread triple.

* * *

 **Character Profile 13**

* * *

 **The Bunny**

 **Beast**

 **Position:** Guardian of The Lair, The Killer No One Suspects

 **Residence:** The Lair

 **Alignment:** Chaotic Neutral (0 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Bunny = 10 lvs.; Dire Bunny = 10 lvs.; Killer Bunny = 5 lvs.; Vorpal Bunny = 5 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Druid = 15 lvs.; High Druid = 10 lvs.; Exalted Druid = 5 lvs.; Warrior = 10 lvs.; Berserker = 10 lvs.; Nature's Avenger = 5 lvs.; Reaping Mauler = 5 lvs.; Beastmaster = `10 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [Racial Levels 30/Class Levels 70]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 85

 **MP:** 50

 **Physical Attack:** 80

 **Physical Defense:** 65

 **Dexterity:** 75

 **Magical Attack:** 30

 **Magical Defense:** 50

 **Resistances:** 75

 **Special:** 95

* * *

 **Review Responses**

* * *

 **Disintergate:** Thanks for the review and I'm glad you're having fun reading!

 **Loki98065:** Yep, I'm back!

 **Ilireanwri:** I'm happy that you feel like this world is alive. I try to make it seem that way without bogging things down too much. Oh that meeting of those two will happen eventually. Though there might not be a wall present for you to sit on . . .

 **PervySageChuck:** Been awhile, thanks for dropping in. Yep, Ainz does indeed get a quick history lesson from Draconis. It may, it may not. We'll see how it goes.

 **RyuujiVantek:** You'll see how things progress. Draconis has a lot on his plate so he's pretty busy too.

 **Thristan:** Thanks for the review!

 **Dimension Disorder:** Thanks a lot. I'm getting close to the Lizardman Arc for Ainz. I can see it on the horizon.

 **MadDan90:** Yeaaah, he'll have to deal with the fallout of the dragons appearing at Arwintar soon enough . . . :P

 **Lew89:** I think you'll enjoy that fight when I get to it. XD

 **Omegadramon2:** Thanks for the review!

 **Awayuki:** I'm baaack! Hooowah!

 **R.E.W.4:** Appreciated. Also noted! :P

 **OverWarlord:** Artorias and her fellows will appear again soon!

* * *

 **Big thank you to all readers and reviewers. Keep safe and till next time!**


	18. Chapter 16: Arena Combat and Dungeon

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Support the official Light Novel releases!

Here comes a huge one. A lot to wrap up for a bit before switching over characters again. Grab drinks and snacks, because this one was a long time writing and proofing over.

* * *

 **Chapter 16: Arena Combat and Dungeon Crawls**

* * *

Draconis sat in a chair in the Singing Apple Pavilion with an utterly incensed Lucia growling at him as he rubbed a healing salve into his scalp to relieve the welt she left him with. She had not done a significant amount of damage with her punch to his head, but the welt that had formed from it had witnesses to the event overly concerned. The swelling was nearly one hundred percent gone now. His healing potion was one of the more potent ones, yet still inferior to his healing magic.

"You still owe me Draconis. Having to weasel my way through the Imperial Knight's questions without revealing too much was more hassle than it was worth. Now the whole damned capital knows about you!"

She did not raise her voice beyond a low mutter, but to him it was loud as a full fledged roar given their dragon hearing. Holding his hands out to her in a placating gesture, he sighed as the pain finally ebbed away.

"Yes, I am sorry Lucia. It was not my intention to cause you such trouble. What can I do to make it even between us?"

Lucia backed off of her anger to contemplate a proper apology for her distressed day with the Imperial Knights after Draconis had teleported away to answer Ainz Ooal Gown's [ _Message_ ]. The patrons around the tavern who were eavesdropping on their conversation perked their ears.

"Hmm . . . I'll think on it. Just know that you've gone and caused quite the stir among the residents here as it is. Your announced match with the Martial Lord as a man who can treat with dragons has completely sold out the Grand Arena. That's something that hasn't happened since the current Martial Lord ousted the previous one. Even the Bloody Emperor is attending from what I gather."

Draconis narrowed his gaze at her words. She knew that he would take full advantage of such a spectacle to speed negotiations to garner more earnest assistance to the Dragon Kingdom. However, she knew of Jircniv El Nix's prejudice against Draudillon Oriculus. Securing aide was not going to go over that easily unless Draconis was going to play hardball.

She took her seat across from him and the table and muttered a single word and suddenly the sounds around them became lower. Draconis quirked a brow at her. He did not recognize this spell. Given that it was just the two of them at their table, he figured she wanted to talk about something sensitive.

"I've cast [ _Phantom Dialogue_ ]. A Tier VII spell that will make us seem like we're talking about trivial things like weather or explaining the surrounding history of the Empire. What we talk about now won't be spied on."

"It works even against scrying?"

She nodded and he gave a single chuckle. That was a useful spell to know, yet he'd never heard of it. Given the plethora of spells YGGDRASIL had, it was easy for certain ones to go completely undiscovered by its player base. Heck, at the prime of its most popular, all of the players of the game combined had only discovered about 30 percent of the game's offerings. It really was a shame that they hadn't discovered more.

"That being said, it still has a duration and Foresight and Miranda will be here soon."

He frowned and nodded his understanding.

"Then what is it you wanted to talk about?"

Lucia took a swing from her tankard before answering him.

"If you want to impress the Bloody Emperor, I think you should fight the Martial Lord with a selection of your traits and skills shut off."

Draconis had a suspicion about where she was steering this conversation, but he still asked to clarify.

"Which ones and why? I thought you were against me fighting the Martial Lord."

Lucia sighed and pointed at him with a glare.

"It's a bit late for that and the attention it will bring." She held her hands up in a stalling fashion. "We both did not think ahead to Luserina bringing the two dragons here to Arwintar and the attention it brought down on us, so I call a truce on that point."

Both of them grimaced at that. Their conversation with Luserina revealed that she had decided to remain magically silent when she had received a magical message from Chronos concerning divination magic being used in the area. They could not fault her for not taking that risk, but her bringing them over the city was still a mistake that they could not erase. At least she had the presence of mind to not land them in the city center.

"But now that attention is on you anyway, you had better not end your match too quickly. Doing so would make you suspect for foul play. People in this world cannot fathom the powers that you and I and others like us bring to the table. Hells, my NPC with her songstress powers would be considered a messenger of the gods with the way her songs behave when providing support or even healing."

Her statement made a certain amount of sense to Draconis. Too swift of a victory would actually, in truth, be detrimental rather than positive for their goal of securing support. The issue was which traits and abilities to restrict himself to. He had an idea, but certain racial traits he possessed were inherent and could not be canceled no matter what he wanted.

"You make a fair point Lucia. I'll cancel several abilities, but understand that not everything can be willingly shut down. Our dragon damage reduction and magical resistances being two of them."

Lucia lifted a finger to stop him and interjecting with a small smile crossing her lips.

"True, we cannot completely lower our passives, but we can reduce their effectiveness of our own will. Just lower you Draconic Damage Reduction to Tier II and you don't have to worry about your Draconic Spell Resistance. Lower Weapon Damage Immunity completely and bleed just a little for the masses. Nothing worthwhile is free right?"

"I'm cleaning up the battle arena of my blood during the fight. I'm not allowing curious mages to use even my dried blood as some kind of catalyst in some questionable ritual. You know how that ended up during the Dragonsong War campaign."

Lucia knew exactly what he was referencing. Draconic Corruption via consuming pure dragon blood in any form regardless of processing or not. Especially strong dragon blood could overrule the natures of the consumer and render them mindless vessels of destruction and fury. The inherent magic in their blood was too potent to be contained by humans or anything not as strong as the dragon themselves. As Level 100 players, their blood was supreme against anyone foolish enough to try imbibing even a single dose. She did not blame him for taking the precaution.

They both nodded in agreement.

"I think there would be another way to gain assistance from the Empire even if it is a bit underhanded in some circles."

Draconis frowned and braced himself.

"Leinas Rockbruise, Imperial Knight of the Bloody Emperor has a curse according to what I've heard. I'm not sure how she came under it or what inflicted it, but I've no healing magic of that caliber. You however . . ."

"Make her indebted to me? Force her to abscond her position by a tit-for-tat deal? I can see that as underhanded quite a bit."

Lucia shrugged and sighed as she shook her head in good humor.

"Here's the thing Draconis, she is not loyal to the Emperor. She was given the position due to her skill under the condition that she hold her own life more sacred and getting revenge on her family for abandoning her due to her curse. She is only loyal to herself. You dangle an enticing enough carrot in front of her . . ."

Lucia left the implications hang in the air between them. Draconis's frown only deepened. He did not like the sound of that very much. Would a person like that truly appreciate such a sudden cure? Did her family truly abandon her just because of this curse by itself? Did the Emperor truly let someone like that into his most powerful of positions in his military?

There were too many "what ifs" for him to make a decision as of that moment. He would have to talk with this Leinas in person along with the Emperor before acting. Oh, he could certainly see the benefits of having her malady cured, but was it worth the risk?

"Look, I know that it's an unsavory move, but Emperor El Nix can and will find someone to replace her if she defects. Hells, her peers expect her too at some point. Why not have her leave while they are not at war while they have time to find a replacement?"

"You drive a very hard and persuasive argument, but I'll have to take some time to decide on a course of action in regards to this Imperial Knight."

She leaned back in her chair with a smile.

"Fair point Draconis."

The sounds around them returned to their normal volume, signifying that their private conversation was at an end. A few moments later Miranda and Foresight showed up. The group greeted the two and Miranda wondered when it was Draconis had returned. She had not heard of his reappearance until a messenger from Singing Apple Pavilion had seen him come down the stairs after Lucia. He had not even entered the doors of the establishment.

Which to her meant that he had teleported back into the capital Lucia had probably done something to circumvent the wards the capital had, but then again, the wards did little to counter anything higher than Tier V.

"Your match is today at noon. An hour from now. Are you going to keep the masses waiting?"

Draconis shook his head and stood from the table. Lucia did so as well and the two walked around to the foyer after paying for their drinks.

"It was not my intention. Please show us the way."

The group departed the tavern and its patrons began to wonder aloud among each other what the possible result would be for the Martial Lord's challenger.

* * *

 **-Grand Arena-**

* * *

Jircniv Farlord El Nix walked down the halls of the Grand Arena with his Imperial Knights in tow. He eagerly awaited this match between Martial Lord and the Scarlet Swordsman. He had heard the reports about the two dragons and the flying armored woman that had accompanied them. The meeting between the Scarlet Swordsman and his woman had sparked his interest. Despite the woman's vague answers when she had been questioned by Baziwood and Nimble, he could tell that the hag of the Dragon Kingdom was becoming desperate if she was needing dragons to assist her.

 _What a weakling and liar besides. I already have a plan in play for when the Dragon Kingdom falls to those deplorable beastmen. If I can snatch this man away from her then all the better. He's clearly acting as a negotiating emissary._

Coming to the door of his personal viewing box, Nimble and Enec entered first and returned after but a moment.

"The room is safe and clear Emperor."

The blond nodded and entered. He made no attempt to show off to the gathered masses. He didn't need to as they cheered his appearance. Two women of his harem reclined on lush cushions as they waited to serve him his drinks and other refreshments. A small smile played across his face. This was looking to be quite the enjoyable affair.

Nimble and Baziwood took their usual guard positions and Leinas and Enec took each of the two entrances. Despite their positioning, they could all clearly see the battle arena below. A large area that could easily fit multiple combatants with no obstacles to hide behind. It was simple, enter and fight and come out triumphant or defeated and very possibly dead.

He had invited the old man, but Paradyne could not be bothered with martial affairs of the Arena. He was still searching for this Ainz Ooal Gown magic caster. Regardless, he was not about to miss this opportunity to recruit a potentially outstanding warrior to help in his battle against Re-Estize.

* * *

 **-Grand Arena Ready Room-**

* * *

Osk watched as Go Gin readied himself for battle. The massive full plate armor encased him like a behemoth. The war club that Osk had also provided combined with the armor was nearly a fifth of his total wealth. As the war troll suited up, he had been telling the Martial Lord about what he had observed of Draconis.

"Enough Osk. Why do you try and give me a further advantage over this random challenger who has not risen in the ranks to fight me?"

The man sighed but held his ground.

"Listen Go Gin, this man is not like the rest. He drew forth a sword from the aether itself!"

Go Gin finished his final strap and grunted as Osk continued.

"It isn't like I don't think you can't win. You're the strongest warrior I've ever seen."

"No. To say that I'm very strong would be a lie. My might comes from my racial abilities and so I cannot consider that true strength. There are actually few people who could contend with me. This is more true ever since I learned martial arts. I lost count of how many times I did not bother learning my foe's abilities and equipment in order to put myself in unfavorable and challenging situations. There is simply no other way for me to train."

The two began the long walk down the Champion's hall to the arena grounds. Cheers could be heard at the festivities. Go Gin could care less about the crowds of onlookers and merely focused on the far side of the arena. There was something that he could barely sense. Everyone could hear the announcer clearly.

"Today we bring all of you a new challenger to test his mettle against our Martial Lord!" The crowd's cheers, jeers, and applause was deafening. "We also have the honor of . . ."

The rest of the words that the announcer was speaking was completely lost to Go Gin as he suddenly felt it. A presence beyond the challenger's gate. He tightened the grip he had on his war club and took several deep breaths. Osk took notice and looked up to Go Gin in concern.

"Go Gin?"

The war troll was taking deep breaths as if calming himself, something he had never seen the war troll ever do in the years that they had known each other up until now.

"Thank you."

Go Gin's words froze him on the spot. He had only ever heard those words from him three times before. The first had been when he had given Go Gin his weapon, the very one in his hands now. Then again with the armor, and finally when he had faced off against the "Rot Lord" the former Martial Lord before Go Gin had beaten him.

"The presence from across the arena is making my instincts scream at me to run away. To flee with all my might. I had not worried when you said that this Draconis was strong when you described his features. My arrogance will now pay me back in kind. This is an opponent overwhelming in might. So I thank you. You have upheld the agreement we made when we first met."

"What do you mean? Do you think you'll lose?" Osk asked with concern.

"Hmph, I have no intentions of losing. Every challenger who faced me did so in hopes of winning. No it is simply me in that place."

Go Gin stepped out from the hall and the crowds erupted into a frenzy. He walked into the battle area several feet before stopping. The announcer began anew and the crowds grew quiet.

"And now. Our Martial Lord Go Gin's challenger! The Scarlet Swordsman!"

The gates raised and the crowds held their breaths. He was tall! Go Gin squinted a bit to confirm that this was not some trick of the eye. This man was so much taller than other humans he had faced before that he thought him an illusion. His instincts screamed at him that this was the man he felt while waiting to walk out into the arena proper.

"Oh? So the Martial Lord is a War Troll? Very interesting."

He did not know what he was? Somehow that only served to reinforce his instinct to flee. This man was like he was. Someone that did not concern himself with his opponent in a duel. Someone strong. So strong as to not know who he was challenging.

"I am Go Gin. Martial Lord of this arena. Scarlet Swordsman. I would know your name."

The man raised eyebrows in surprise before smiling broadly with a chuckle. Go Gin did not miss what was revealed in his doing so. Fangs. Incisors longer and likely sharper than a wolfkin. Was this man not human? A hybrid bastard?

"My name is Draconis Brightblade. Go Gin is a strong name and easy to say. It is refreshing to see a War Troll able to civilize like this. I learn something new everyday and this is a very pleasant surprise."

Go Gin found himself impressed that this Draconis complimented his name. Even going as far as complimenting him despite his race. Perhaps this was due to whatever blood gave him his fangs?

"It would seem that you understand a bit of my racial culture. It is true that shorter names are stronger among our species. I have lived here for several years now and learned that humans like to take long names to sound strong. I will not poke fun at them, I can sense you take great pride in that name. To insult the names of the strong is an insult to all warriors."

Draconis's face was one of both impressed admiration and an earned respect. Go Gin could tell that he had made a favorable impression and despite his lack of care for such a thing . . . felt a sense of satisfaction that someone strong viewed him as such.

"Well now . . . I must say that I am genuinely impressed and humbled. That such a level of honor and pride can be found among your kind is yet another reason for my advice to Queen Draudillon not to go through with a counter invasion . . . Forgive me. I ramble."

"You speak of the Dragon Kingdom to the south and the beastmen. You would not condemn them the act of eating humans? My race views them as food as well."

Draconis closed his eyes and clenched a fist.

"I can understand that other races would consider humans a food source. However, you yourself are proof positive that there are exceptions. You said it yourself. You have lived here for years. Yet they have not fed you human flesh? You control your urges do you not?"

Go Gin nodded slightly.

"I have. But it is due to the simple truth that I have not met anyone worthy of being made a meal. You however, if I defeat you, I wish to devour you. That way I will gain your powers and strength."

Draconis frowned grimly and lifted his head in challenge. It was then that Go Gin got a clear view of his eyes. The multi-hued prismatic eyes took him off guard. He found his grip on his war club tightening.

"I do not blame you for that view even if I do not think it wise. I do not believe that would be how you would gain powers like mine in any case. However, if I come out of this victorious, then what shall I receive in turn? It is not proper to wager one's own reward and then not give a counter offer."

"I shall pledge servitude to you. Though I doubt it would matter in the case of my death."

Draconis smirked after thinking quietly for a moment. The crowd did not expect a civil conversation instead of immediate combat, but the two men's conversation was being paid special attention by all present. It was rare for the Martial Lord to talk this much. Never mind that such a conversation from him had never been heard of with any of his previous opponents.

"I know of those who can acquit your death and bring you back. You will have no refusal to the raising to fulfill your promise Go Gin."

The Martial Lord nodded a single, sharp time.

"Very well."

He hefted his war club.

"Ready yourself!"

Draconis drew one of the two blades at his side. Go Gin noticed it and took stock of its make.

 _An adamantite weapon? That could actually pierce my racial defenses and strong skin._

He then took similar note of the man's stance. It was the stance of someone familiar with combat, not someone who just went through the motions like Osk did as a hobby, but a veteran warrior. His nose then caught the scent and his mighty gut clenched. Cinders and fire. Burnt air like lightning. Searing brilliance like light magic.

 _Yes. This one is truly strong! I will actually have to go all out. I could not ask for a better opponent._

Go Gin stepped forward with his war club in a battle ready position. The gong for the battle to start rang out and the war troll charged. Clumps of dirt flew up with each mighty step before Go Gin released a crushing downward smash. Draconis lunged backward and the heavy weapon left a small crater in the dirt. The man landed a few feet from the attacker and he dashed back in with a thrust.

The Martial Lord saw this and swung his club into the path of the blade, batting it aside. Spinning with the counter, Draconis took notes on Go Gin's form and strength.

It was as expected of a war troll. Though he could feel that a portion of it was being enhanced by equipment as well. For all intents and purposes, the full plate was impressive as it was created for a larger creature and the war club was equally impressive for the demi-human wielding it. With several of his abilities lowered or disabled, he could really better appreciate the power that Go Gin possessed.

Another swing of the club came hard and fast from low left to upper right like a golf swing. The blow connected with Draconis's sword and the blow sent him flying across the arena through the air. Draconis's first instinct was to activate [ _Fly_ ] or his [ _Sky Walker_ ] abilities, but he squashed them. Instead, he twisted his body to change his trajectory and flipped right side up. Burying the sword into the dirt and skidding to a stop several feet. The shallow line he left in the dirt from his blade was a few yards in length.

Flinging the dirt from his sword after drawing it from the ground he smiled and leaped. The crowds watched in surprise as his leap covered more than fifty feet. The man spiraled through the air like a top, the sword in his hands flashing in the sunlight as he rotated. To Lucia, it looked like the Weapon Skill [ _Aerial Circle_ ] but it lacked any of the flash and panache. It was simply spinning in the air to add centrifugal force to the simple rotating slash.

To all others though it looked like some unnamed Martial Art. The man spun counter clockwise as he crossed the distance between him and the Martial Lord. The metal war club met his slash and Draconis was fairly impressed. The weapon had enough enchantment to not be sliced through from the force of their strikes. As gravity took hold again, Draconis pushed his body into a back flip, kicking up with his left leg to knock the war club upward. The weapon did take the hit, but then he felt it. A hand clasped his leg and he found himself dangling for a second before being sent flying again. He impacted the nearest section of wall a second later at full force.

The crowd roared with approval as Go Gin threw his challenger into the wall. People expected the man to be done if he was still alive. Go Gin made no victory gesture though and merely stared at the wall. As the dust and dirt settled the scarlet haired swordsman coughed and spat dust and dirt. Extracting himself from the rubble, he smirked at Go Gin. A bruise on his forehead from the impact faded and left no trace. It was quick, but Go Gin's eyes saw it.

 _He heals fast as I do. So he isn't human either. Osk said he was not going to use magic, so if he is honorable, then he has a racial ability like mine._

Go Gin was surprised that he was having to learn and process his opponent in such a way. The instinct to flee was still there, but his warrior's pride drove him onward. This was it, this was the battle he craved! To push himself beyond his boundaries. Whoever, no . . . whatever this man was could do so where all other opponents had failed.

As he set himself to rush at the man before him, he was stunned to see him rushing at him with sword held back and low to the ground as she sprinted dead on. Never had he seen speed like this and he hastily swung horizontally, trying to catch the quick crimson streak. The blow sent a gust of wind into the stands behind him and the crowd in the vicinity hooped and hollered. Yet there was no body there or in the wall to his right where he should have flown if the blow landed. Go Gin frowned. He had not felt it hit. Why did his club seem heavier?

 _Heavier . . . ?!_

Go Gin turned his head to the right and looked up at his weapon that was still frozen in its end swing. Draconis dangled from underneath the weapon. A foot was propped up and the underside and the sword he wielded stabbed into the club to the hand guard, where he gripped it with his left hand as he looked a Go Gin.

"Even in a hasty swing, your form is surprising Go Gin. Most people rushed like that don't even try to react."

Pushing off the weapon, the sword came free and Draconis rotated to land on his feet. Go Gin took the opportunity to smash downward.

[ _Flow Acceleration_ ]

Go Gin let loose a series of attacks that Draconis dodged or blocked. Each block resounded with shockwaves from the brutality of Go Gin's mighty strength. Draconis shifted with each of his blocks and sidesteps. His eyes never moved higher than Go Gin's waist armor, yet he blocked or dodged well beyond anyone's expectation.

A left to right horizontal swing was ducked with a backward sway before cartwheeling back to evade a returning slash with the metal war club. The wind generated by the swings buffeted his coat tails. A high over the back block stopped a third leveled blow. Go Gin transferred into a cleaving hammer strike that Draconis stepped back from and let the weapon pass mere inches from his nose before jumped up and over the combination side swing with an Olympians high vault jump. Kicking his feet up and over, his vault landed him behind Go Gin. Lashing out, the war troll saw the attack and interceded with his weapon. The huge club warded off his slash. Turning a full rotation with a rising golf swing, the man side stepped again and the wind blew his coat wildly as he kept his eyes on Go Gin, predicting the next move he would make.

From their seats in the stands Foresight could only stare. Hekkeran Termite had heard of this, but didn't have the experience to do it himself. Seeing it firsthand was surreal. Roberdyck couldn't help but ask.

"How is he dodging and blocking without looking at the Martial Lord's blows?"

"They say that experienced warriors can tell what you're doing from looking at your waist and hips in a fight. Other say to watch the eyes of an opponent, but the waist telegraphs more than eyes do."

"What do you mean Termite?"

Imina was a ranger and archer so she wasn't in melee combat often.

"Sword swings and thrusts require rotation and muscles that tighten and flex to generate power or speed. A person's hips and stomach area can telegraph that. Twisting one way, or tensing in another shows techniques origins and target points, but it's something only a veteran of countless battles can achieve. A lot of people think that wearing armor lessens the effect, but it actually makes it easier. Armor makes noises and shifts as the body moves."

The group nodded as they listened to Hekkeran explain.

"That's fine to explain, but actually doing it?"

They all looked back at the fight. Draconis dipped and back stepped beyond the reach of a powerful overhead smash that kicked up dirt and dust. Go Gin brought the club back up, ripping up chunks of the ground and flinging them forward. Draconis whirled his blade about, swatting away larger chunks with the flat of his sword blade.

The Dragon Ascendant frowned a bit.

 _There's a lot of dust and dirt in the air now. My_ [Blindsense] _has dulled due to all the sold particles in the air. Intentional or not, this is like a smokescreen for my senses._

No sooner had he thought that than the club came hurtling through the dust. Preoccupied with his thoughts, Draconis noticed it but did nothing to defend himself.

 _Let's see how much this actually hurts . . ._

"Oof!" he grunted as the club caught him full on. The swing kept going and it felt like being on a teacup ride, swinging around and then away. Slamming hard into a pillar at the outer edge of the arena right in front of Foresight and Miranda and Lucia, they were just to the left of the Emperor's personal box.

It took Lucia all of a millisecond to notice that his sword was not in his hand before Draconis bit back a curse and the sound of flesh being pierced could be heard by all close by. His sword impaled him to the pillar through the chest. Gritting her teeth, she had not expected Go Gin to actually take such an initiative and pick up Draconis's lost weapon and use it in such a manner. He had never touched an opponent's weapon in the past. Perhaps the appearance of one strong enough to fight him had made him begin to think outside the normal. Why had it have to be against Draconis to use such unorthodox fighting methods?

Foresight cringed at the sigh of him dangling by his own blade. Miranda winced, but she did not cry out. She could see Draconis's eyes from her angle. They had not glazed over in death. Rather they had become thoughtful.

The crowd had gone silent.

In his box, Emperor Jircniv sighed heavily in disappointment.

"What an anticlimactic finish. Perhaps he was not all that he was cracked up to be. At least that hag queen won't have him anymore."

Baziwood held up a hand to stop his compatriots and the Emperor from moving.

"What is it Baziwood?"

"Look closer. He's not dead."

"What?!"

Look closer they did, and Nimble's eyes widened in shock. Leinas gasped and covered her mouth with a hand. Enec swallowed as their emperor narrowed his eyes and watch closer. The man's eyes were clear and sharp, filled with thoughts. They did not have the haze that a man wounded mortally would have.

Down below, Go Gin could still hear his opponent's heartbeat. How strong was his regenerative abilities? Even he would die if impaled in the heart and it was left there. Regeneration was a fierce obstacle to have to overcome, but it was possible with enough damage being done constantly or the weakness being exploited. He was no undead, for his scent and heartbeat proved it.

The crowd cried out and then swallowed nervously as Draconis spoke from his impaled position.

"Very impressive Go Gin. You hold your position of Martial Lord well. I had honestly not expected you to make use of my dropped sword."

Draconis pushed himself slowly from the pillar he was pinned to. As he did so, those nearby cried out and shied away as his blood ignited into flames of azure blue. The pillar ignited and burned until his blood was gone. Then the masses cried out when they noticed as he fell that the pillar was half burn away. Solid stone! Burned away like dust! Locations touched by his blood burned bright azure before fizzling out as gouts in the ground and stone wherever his blood touched.

Fortunately, no people had been sprayed by his blood.

Lucia knew what this was for she also had the ability as a Dragon Ascendant.

[ _Dragon's Tears_ ]. A racial ability only granted to Dragon Ascendants. Their blood could be ignited to deal Exalted Fire Damage. As Ascended, they were considered by the lore to be partially divine, as such, their blood was also classified as the Holy Element and thus not subjected to normal Fire Resistance or even Immunity. The more you made them bleed, the more damage they dealt from merely being splashed by their blood.

She had figured that this was what he would do to prevent samples of his blood being collected by mages here. What she didn't get were the colors of his flames. Her's were bright red. Why were his azure? She made a note to ask him if he knew the reason later.

Landing on the ground back in the arena, he stood back to his full height with his sword still in his chest. Using both hands, he pulled the sword from his chest part way, the blood spraying from both his back and chest as he grunted against the pain. Flames of azure sparked and blazed as he pulled the sword fully from his torso and planted it blade first into the dirt. The flames burned as Go Gin watched his wound close at a rate that he knew was superior to his own fast healing. Flames burned at his chest and back, leaving scorched armor at either side of his torso.

In the skies above, a storm seemed to materialize out of thin air. The clouds rumbled and the crowds began to panic. Draconis looked up to the brewing storm and shouted something in a language that he could not understand. The winds died down and the storm slowly dissipated. Did this man command weather?

"My sincere apologies Go Gin. One of my compatriots probably is watching this match of you and I and took personal offense at your maneuver just a moment ago. That shall not happen again. This is a match between warriors, not a mage duel."

Draconis bowed to him.

Miranda and Foresight turned to Lucia with accusing eyes. The dragon woman shook her head hastily in the negative. A magic caster that could control the weather? A high druid maybe?

Go Gin nodded, acknowledging Draconis's apology. He was not unfamiliar with adventurers and workers and their groups. It made sense that he would be a member of such a group. Were they all just as strong as him?

The two engaged in combat again and this time, Go Gin, noticed a dramatic difference in the man's stances and technique. He had been testing him! The man's blocks and dodges had been efficient, but a bit showy. Now they were all the efficiency and none of the showiness. Brutal, effective, combat focused. The man had not even drawn the second blade at his side. His eyes had become razor focused.

 _Is this a true warrior? I came into this thinking I would be the defender of my title, but it feels the opposite. Like I am the challenger . . ._

Draconis swiped left to right with his blade and Go Gin felt it. Pain.

His regeneration healed it slowly, but it was definitely there. The man's blade bite into his side and pierced his full plate. Draconis had drawn blood.

[ _Reinforce Hide_ ]. Go Gin grit his teeth as he activated his extra natural defenses. The adamantite sword came seeking flesh again and Go Gin felt pain again as this blow lacerated his off hand. Grunting, he swung down to no avail. Yet when he made to pull the club back, he found that he could not do so.

Looking down, he noticed that Draconis's blade was pressed down on the top of the war club. Pulling again, he could not bring the strength needed to lift his weapon from under the man who pinned his club down with his sword, a weapon a fraction the size!

"You have exceeded my expectations Go Gin. I would ask that you call this a draw or cede this match. I do not wish to kill one such as you. It is rare to run into an anomaly such as yourself. You have so much untapped potential and unfortunately no real way to improve beyond the stage that you are at now."

"I cannot. I am still the king of this arena! Draconis Brightblade I will struggle against you until my dying breath."

Draconis frowned slightly and sighed, but did not scorn him. Rather he lifted his blade from the club and smiled. A fang glistened.

"I can feel your resolve in your words Go Gin. Very well, it would insult you to question this any longer as a warrior! Prepare, here comes the real strike."

The second sword was drawn and Go Gin suddenly felt lighter on his left side. The audience cried out in shock as Go Gin's arm flew to the side. The second blade of the scarlet swordsman had cleaved upward and through both armor and hide and bone like paper. Go Gin roared in challenge to drive through the pain as he activated his Martial Arts.

[ _Greater Reinforce Hide_ ], [ _Strong Strike_ ], [ _Flow Acceleration_ ]!

Go Gin unleashed his Martial Arts and unleashed a flurry of strikes with his metal war club. The huge weapon raining blow upon blow down on Draconis. The crimson haired man set his stance firm and his eyes brightened. The left sword shifted to remain at the small of his back. His stance was lower than when he dueled Cerabrate, but the concept was the same. A one handed blade shield that he tracked his target with his eyes and unleashed parry after parry. The difference in this exchange compared to The Fierce Flash was that Cerabrate was shorter, and thus less powerful simply to to physiology alone.

Go Gin was huge, a war troll with height and muscle mass. Therefore Draconis lowered his center of gravity to better his weight and stability. Diagonal right to bottom left swing from Go Gin was staved off by intercepting with a downward thrust that forced the club to impact dirt after it glided down the blade at an off angle. The returning upward strike was adjusted to fly straight up when the sword interceded from below in a rising slice that forced the club off course.

Go Gin slashed down at a left to right angle this time and Draconis rebuffed this attack with its equal and opposite rising slash, the two strikes rebounded with a deafening clash of metals. Go Gin was rocked back to his heels, yet Draconis grit his teeth and held his stance.

The Martial Lord swiftly recovered and took hold of his war club in a choked up grip. The club shined for a moment and Draconis stared at it with interest. The crowds gave a resounding cry as they had not seen Go Gin use this Martial Art since he ousted the previous Martial Lord.

They called it Divine Skill: [ _Single Flash_ ]. Not a single opponent had ever walked away from the attack that was considered the mightiest of the Martial Lord.

War club swung and Draconis could feel the warrior's pride on the line as the blow closed in. Releasing his stance the second sword came up to join its sister blade and Draconis swung level with both at the same time. The clash was deafening and the crowds roar dulled to tense silence as they waited for the smoke and dust to settle.

"No way. That's impossible." Imina muttered in utter astonishment. Her teammates nodded in agreement, yet they were witnessing it first hand.

"What kind of monster is he?" Baziwood heard Enec question as they saw the smoke clear away. Leinas flinched at the sight. Was this man like The Six Great Gods? The Eight Greed Kings?

The swords of the scarlet swordsman bit deeply into the club but did not break it. Draconis was in a deadlock with Go Gin, the war troll's strongest failing to knock him back more than a few feet in an arc. Yet it appeared that Go Gin was the actual one struggle to keep it maintained.

"Am I weak? How can you be this strong? You are not human, I can tell from your scent. A human does not smell the way you do. Even after all of this you barely breath hard and are not sweating even after taking a normally mortal blow. Am I really so weak?"

Draconis held their weapons together as he looked up into the slit in the helm of his opponent.

"Do not doubt yourself. You are not weak Go Gin. There's just always a bigger fish. Someone stronger. I am no exception."

Draconis was not lying when he spoke those words and Go Gin could feel that in his voice. Part of him felt something new . . . a burning desire to see more.

"Strength comes from more than just physical might though. You have more than most. The only way to become stronger is to face life and the dangers that it brings. You merely have not faced the dangers powerful enough to force you to reach beyond where you are now."

Go Gin swallowed. He wanted it. Wanted to see these powers! To drive beyond where he was now. To see absolute strength!

"Then here at the last, Draconis Brightblade, allow me to see even a fraction of your true strength. Allow me to witness the pinnacle of might!"

Go Gin ripped his club up to smash it down on Draconis's head.

"Very well Go Gin."

He crossed his blades above his head and blocked the overhead smash without effort as he reactivated his racial abilities at full power and brought a number of his class skills back to active status. It was with this that the Martial Lord felt the shift in his being. His heart raced in both fear and excitement.

 _This! This is it! True might!_

Ripping swords apart, the club sliced in two, stunning the audience.

"I trust you will remember that you cannot refuse the raise afterward . . ." He dropped into a lowered crouch with both swords behind his back. Lucia did not recognize it, but she knew that he was about to use a weapon skill.

"ARE YOU READY?!"

Draconis bellowed and his voice echoed through the air with power.

The Bloody Emperor leaned forward in anticipation. This man was outclassing all his expectations after shrugging off a mortal blow. He failed to notice in his manic attention, that Baziwood and Nimble were sweating. Enec was biting his lip and Leinas stood frozen.

The swords whipped from around his back simultaneously is flashes of dark adamantite. The twin strikes passed clean through Go Gin, but before the flashes of dark metal could even disappear a second set of flashes appeared and mirrored the first two perfectly before shattering in a darkened circle formed of two twin sword slashes as they passed through each other and out to form a full circle.

The circle effect reached from the two combatants to just short of the arena edge, over twenty yards in diameter.

The second set of attacks came from behind Go Gin and the crowd could not believe it. Draconis had suddenly moved behind Go Gin and none had seen him move. The twin adamantite swords rested in their sheaths and Go Gin fell to the dirt. Blood spilled all around his body.

"Twin Eclipse."

Lucia whispered the name of the weapon skill. Foresight looked at her. Was that a Martial Art? What kind of Martial Art could kill Go Gin with out effort?

"A middle high tier technique that is meant to mow down mobs and groups. It's quick and very hard to dodge if you can't predict it."

Truth was, Lucia did not mention aloud . . . that [ _Twin Eclipse_ ] was attainable for any warrior class or battle class physical fighter by level 40. So by comparison to what he could have used, it was weak. Even more so against single targets. Higher class [ _Total Eclipse_ ] could wreck half a football field at a fifty yard diameter. It looked really flashy and had decent damage, but its real perk was the sheer amount of hidden Aggro value it could pull. Though Aggro and "Hate" was a hidden value in YGGDRASIL, Draconis and Bukubukuchagama as Tanks had learned to adjust and compensate and learn what did what amount of Aggro and "Hate" to targets. It was a source of their friendship during the heydays.

The announcer sputtered as he recovered from the shock.

"G-Go Gin is defeated . . . The Scarlet Swordsman is victorious over the Martial Lord! Hail the crowning of a new Martial Lord!"

Arena staff rushed out onto the battle ground proper to clean and prepare the corpse of Go Gin. As they approached Draconis, he stopped them short.

"Do not desecrate his body. I will be having him brought back. We made an agreement and I will see that his end of the bargain is upheld."

The attendants nodded and bowed before working to gather up Go Gin's bulky cadaver. As they did so, he raised a hand and pointed it toward the Emperor's box. The crowd's roaring cries died out as a different kind of tension set in. Pointing at the Emperor in challenge was asking for a death sentence.

"Emperor Jircniv Farlord El Nix! I wish to talk with you. I trust this would be enough to make way for such a meeting?"

Jircniv stood from his seat. The women at his side gasped at the smirk that played across his lips. The Bloody Emperor walked to the edge of the banister and lifted his hands in praise.

"Indeed it does Martial Lord! I will await you in my palace upon the morning! I look forward to discussions with you."

Baziwood and his fellow Imperial Knights tensed and he felt a sense of dread travel down his spine.

 _If he could so easily fell Martial Lord Go Gin when all four of use together could not achieve victory against him, then what of this man? He shrugged off being impaled with adamantite! Never mind what the hell that Martial Art was!_

Leinas felt the desperate urge to run and not attend the meeting between Jircniv and this man, no monster! A sudden prick in her mind sent her defenses to whirl but they came up short. A feminine, older voice crept into her mind.

" _Do not run from this meeting. You may find that the power you seek is closer than expected and attainable, but only if it's with that man."_

The voice in her mind faded and she knew who it was. Miranda the Mad. What the hells had she been dragged into this time?! Miranda had pierced her magical wards that she wore on her with ease. Damn that oracle! If it was true though . . . she bit her thumbnail.

Unlike Jircniv, his Imperial Knights did not feel like this meeting would end well.

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Why did things like this never feel like they will end well?

The sentiment was going around every member of Amelia Lumier's team as they traversed the tunnels of their mission. No traps had triggered yet, and all they could do was move forward. The entrance had closed behind doors made of a metal they had never seen before. The alchemist who was with them had been stunned. It was harder than adamantite! The adamantite weapon that they had tried to break the door with shattered . . . _shattered!_

The group continued to look at the murals leading to an open chamber. The knight and dragons had continued to make appearances as had the queen and her knights. Was this a natural encased mausoleum? Were they treading on sacred ground?

They came into a huge chamber lit with magical torches that gave off no heat, so the tunnels and chamber was rather cold. Yet the air here was not stale, but fresh. They could see fine grates that must have been used to magically vent fresh air inside from outside the mountain. A towering monolith stood at the center of the oval chamber. Twenty feet wide and fifteen feet deep; it stood nearly forty feet tall. It was made of a giant singular slab of gemstone! Not rock but precious stone! Blue sapphire in coloration, yet all throughout it was a starry glittering deposits that made it sparkle like a clear night.

Inlaid into the face of the monolith was a gold rimmed plaque of pure white marble. Etched into the stone plaque was a message.

 _Recognition for felling the Fell Dragon Fafnir._

 _Draconis Brightblade, Knight Most Heavenly_

 _Artorias Faye Pendragon, Queen of Knights_

 _Gareth "Beaumains" Tellius, Sky Valkyrie_

 _Mordred, Fell Knight_

 _Lancelot Du Lac, World Champion_

 _Merlin, Grand Magus_

 _The Lair: Grand Fortress of the Mount_

 _Master of The Lair: Draconis Brightblade_

 _Permanent Resident: Draconis Brightblade_

 _Forged and burrowed from the Fell Dragon Fafnir, whose poisonous blood could reduce fertile land to corrupted marsh this abode stands as testament true to his corrupted legacy, purged by the hands of those that slew the demon dragon Fafnir. Thus this abode is now sacred and redeemed by the acts of but a few._

 _His cursed treasure, returned to the people by the party responsible for purging the Fell Dragon is also freed from its sinister pall. The grounds herein and hereto are sacred and only those acknowledged by its master shall walk it's halls unchallenged. The Guardians of The Lair shall seek any intruder who dares violate their master's home._

Two doors lay beyond the monolith. One was shrouded in ivy and plant life while the other was obviously a fortified door of the same metal that they could not break through. Both lay wide open. The group looked to Amelia and she frowned heavily.

"Did Thousand Eyes Astrologer get it wrong? This makes no mention of that angel."

"Perhaps the angel is one of the guardians?"

The team of Clearwater Scripture members wondered about that. Did that mean that this master of The Lair was favored by the heavens? Could he be a Godkin?

"Should we continue in or try to leave?" One of the other members asked. "It's obvious that this is far more than we expected. Tunnels that were a dragon's lair? Murals of knights and queens fighting side by side with dragons? Doors made of a material that scoffs at what we believed to be the strongest metal of all. This monolith? We're in over our heads."

Some of the members of the group nodded in agreement. This was not an officially sanctioned mission either. Their lives were too important. Especially now that the Sunlight Scripture had been reported as annihilated by a single magic caster. Their branch of Scriptures was not a combat unit. They were an investigative one, so why should they risk combat with these Guardians in the first place?

However, the rest of the group shook their heads in disagreement.

"This information could be vital in the future. We must learn what we can while we are able. If even one of us can get this information back to the homeland, then it will have been worth it."

Amelia silenced her team with a hand motion when she noticed movement at one of the doors. The metal door opened and voices could be heard from the other side. No one moved as the same white bunny appeared in the doorway. It's clear red eyes stared at them as its whiskers twitched. It hopped to the ivy door and the door opened. The ivy withdrew from the surface in the the posts. Leaves and roots retracted from the base of the door. Bark fell away from its face and the chambers opened.

A pleasant breeze wafted through the cold chamber. The smell of flowers tickled their noses. The bunny hopped through the door and the portal shut. Roots regrew into the base of the door. The ivy regrew with a speed that defied logic. Bark collected on its front face. The group looked to each other and then to the opened door. None of them wanted to tempt fate with that bunny hopping around. Looking to the door that voices were still coming from, Amelia swallowed nervously.

"It seems we're being given little choice at this juncture. We're going towards the voices. We can't go back the way we came. I'm completely creeped out by that bunny rabbit. It's like it's taunting us."

The rest of them agreed and they approached the door. It did not seemed to be trapped or otherwise rigged. Amelia stepped through and the hall beyond lit up. Lined on either side of the fifteen foot wide hallway were statues with mythril spears and shields! There were twenty of them, five feet apart down to the end of the hallway were it looked to divine into two paths left and right and a central door with a retracting gate.

"They don't come to life you don't think?"

Left Ramrod frowned as he spoke from behind her. The rest of the team flinched at the suggestion. The statues were fifteen feet tall and made of mythril as well!

" _You have quite the insightful subordinate young lady."_ The voice that greeted them from before spoke. Yet again his voice permeated the air. _"I have instructed the Totem Guard to not harm you unless you take aggressive actions against those who have taken to calling The Lair home. They will also attack you if you try to take anything without permission. No touching."_

The team frowned and cursed under their breaths. How were they to bring back evidence? Another member of the team spoke out.

"Who are you? Why do you not show yourself?"

" _You are intruders and trespassers. However, our Liege bid us treat mercifully those that may enter should they be of rationale and sentience. I will not show myself if not need be. You said it yourselves. You are here for intelligence. Why would I give more information than is wise?"_

"Might I ask if you are one of this place's Guardians?"

Amelia stood there after she asked her question. There was a moment of silence before the voice answered them. By his tone, it sounded as if he was amused.

" _I am indeed. Please proceed forward and choose a path. I daresay the result will prove enlightening."_

The group had doubts to the sincerity of the man talking to them. They were being treated mercifully? Was mercy equal to just not killing them? To Amelia, it made a certain amount of sense, they technically were intruding, but how did that happen when you did not know that this was owned by someone? Who just claims a cavern?

She mentally cringed as she answered her own question a fraction of a second later.

 _This used to be a dragon's lair. A Fell Dragon? Is that like a demon dragon? The master of this place slew it and claimed this place as his own?_

The group pressed forward and looked down both hallways before looking over the gated door. They could hear the voices clearer from the right side. After looked between her team members a few times, they silently agreed to take the right path. After they reached a certain point, the voices began to become clearer.

"Mama! I'm hungry!"

A young girl? The group crept closer to the end of the corridor that turned into a large walkway above an enlarger chamber.

"Alright. It is nearly time for supper. Shall we go to the dining hall?"

The girl cheered and they could hear others talking and chatting among each other like a pavilion. Looking out and over the walkway they were taken back by what they were seeing. Did they come out into an open air area of the mountain? They could see forests and mountains in the distance. A crystal clear lake shimmered below them. All around the lake were what looked to be families. Human and demi-human alike! A fawn like girl pranced around an older female. A centaur! They had never seen one before, yet this was a centaur woman with a daughter! Their human bodices where dressed no different than a normal person and their horselike bodies were in barding that resembled dresses.

The lake had people swimming in it. There were fey creatures, and elves! The instinct to attack in a few of them was tempered to stillness when a few of the elves brought out instruments and began playing. The music prompted many around them to either listen or begin dancing with each other in routines they'd never seen before.

There were what looked like wolf-men and women and other demi-humans as well. They counted dwarves and were those demons?! They had horns and tails of scales and wild hair on the men. The men who had these horns that varied from person to person easily dwarfed their female counterparts who maybe only came to their mid chest! All of these joined in the merry making down below them. Oblivious to the intruders above them. Or could they be seen at all?

A loud thud prompted the group to look back and some drew weapons expecting an attack. Yet instead they were perplexed by a winged woman and man with the man rubbing his forehead. The woman giggled at him.

"Damn maintenance tunnel with the invisibility shroud . . . . I keep forgetting that its there." He groaned in frustration and pain.

"Well dear, there are flag markers letting us fliers known that it is indeed there. I tried to warn you."

Their wings flapped quick and hard to keep them hovering. Their wings were like hawk wings and the woman's markings were soft browns and hazels. Her friend or relative, they couldn't tell, had dark black feathers with gray undertones.

"Yeah, and whoever is inside is probably getting a good laugh at me . . . Let's just hurry up and land so we can join in the fun okay?"

The winged woman laughed at him even as she patted his shoulder to console him. She went ahead of him in descending as he sighed and followed her. The members of the Clearwater Scriptures could only watch in disbelief.

The Amelia grit her teeth. Was this real? It had to be with the two winged race members interactions. She motioned for them to press onward. The rest of them followed all the way across the walkway. Were the railings in illusion? When one of them let curiosity get the better of her, she reached out and discovered that there was a barrier between them, yet they could hear and see everything on the outside of this tunnel.

Arriving at the end of the tunnel, they looked back the way they had come and the last member of the group flinched. At the far end of the tunnel, was the white rabbit. Its crimson eyes stared at them, though it made no move to approach them. Each of them were becoming both unnerved and annoyed by the creature's constant appearance.

"That rabbit, is it the same one from both times before?"

Left Ramrod shuddered. After what they just witnessed with the humans and demi-humans here. If that was real and not an illusion, then just what manner of being's abode were they trespassing in? Was this some kind of sanctuary for those wanting to live among each other in peace? He couldn't grasp the concept. He wasn't meant to be a thinker anyway!

"If it is that's disturbing."

"At this point is has to be a ploy. Like a way that man is watching us. Do you think it's a magic caster's familiar?"

The group had not heard of such a thing, but it wasn't completely unlikely. Ignoring the rabbit for the moment, they continued down the hallway. The floors changed from a clean, slate gray marble to a white speckled black stone floor of polished heart stone. Their boots clacked and clopped on the floor as the new chamber lit up. Each of them came to an abrupt stop. The chamber here was bottomless. A deep, pitch black pit opened up before them with no way to see the bottom. A random intervals, there was a floating platform approximately twenty feet by forty feet.

Between them, were platforms that shifted and traversed the void before them. Two of them ended flush to the entrance they stood at. At the far end of the cavernous room was a precipice with a set of double doors. Two switches that matched the gate that kept the doors closed lie on separate platforms. Nothing else was present in the room.

"Two switches. Do you think they're rigged?"

One of their members asked. The entire party hummed in thought. That would be mean and sadistic to have a pit fall trap on the floating platforms. Left Ramrod looked to their assigned quartermaster.

"Do you have any of those levitation charms or portions?"

The man ruffled through his pack for a moment before drawing out four concoctions in pale green flasks. The number made the group frown.

"Truly? Not enough for everyone?" Amelia let annoyance creep into her voice. The man shrugged in apology.

"What do you expect? These aren't cheap and this is not an official mission. I could only obtain so much without attracting the attention of the higher ups."

Amelia sighed. The man had a point. Due in large part to the war with the Elf Kingdom, certain supplies were heavily monitored. It would not do to bring unwanted attention down on their heads for taking too many supplies with them for unknown reasons.

"Very well. How shall we go about this? Trigger them both at the same time or one at a time?"

"I'd much rather not remain here for any longer than is necessary. I vote we trigger them at the same time."

Nods went around the group in agreement. Amelia and Left took one floating platform and the rest of the team took the other one that came up to them. As they traveled across the open room on the floating platforms, the groups were kept low to avoid possible invisible surprises that could knock them over.

Each group reached their switch platform at the same instant. Both groups stepped onto their respective platforms and carefully looked around for any obvious traps or triggers.

"How does your platform appear?"

The group waved back to Amelia as they shouted.

"We're clear here."

Not thinking too hard on the what-ifs, Amelia triggered her switch as her fellow Scripture members hit theirs. The sounds of something coming up to meet her rang in her ears. Left Ramrod set himself in preparation for anything that arrived that was hostile. What none of them expected was to have the environment change around them. All of them found themselves in a lightly forested area.

A soft fragrance wafted past their noses and the group turned to see a sea green haired woman with elegant clothing sipping a cup of some steaming liquid. She sat in what looked like an uncomfortable position with her legs tucked under her person. In her lap was that white rabbit.

"Who are you?!"

One of their members drew her daggers, her wits at their final end. The woman lowered her cup and opened her eyes. Their color made them flinch. She possessed honey amber eyes that seemed to pierce their souls.

"Thou would inquire of me mine given name when thou art the interloper? Fie, mine given name is Hazuki Ame-no-Murakumo Hokushin. I am graced with the honor and blessing of a Guardian of The Lair of Draconis-sama. By mine honor I shall ensure that you are stopped here. Know that your opponent however, is not me, but mine nakama. Bunny-dono."

Her old dialect was hard to follow, but they got the message as the bunny rabbit hopped off of her lap and toward them. The small animal stood on his hindquarters and squeaked adorably. It pawed the air with its right front paw in a saluting gesture before sinking back on all fours and huddling low.

One of the swordsmen in their group sighed.

"Really? That rabbit may have been following us around, but fighting it is . . .ARGHhh . . . !"

The man went tumbling backwards and The Bunny double back flipped after ramming him in the gut with a flying head butt. The others around him panicked and backed away as the furry cannonball landed.

"It got Matthias!" The man named Matthias was in a heap groaning, but alive. The others drew weapons but Amelia doubted their ability to fight something so small that was so fast she could barely track it. Beside her, Left Ramrod donned his gauntlet. It was made of orichalcum and enchanted to inflict shocking blows. However quick and unusually strong this bunny rabbit was, it was still just an animal . . . wasn't it?

They had to retreat from here, wherever here was! That it had finally come to combat, they knew that the majority of the team was a liability. Other than Matthias, Amelia and Left were the only real combatants. This was a nightmare. A bunny rabbit of all things?

The group drew weapons, fully expecting to rely on Amelia and Left. There was just no way that they could lose to a bunny rabbit of all things. The woman still sipped whatever it was she was drinking. Was she its master?

The Bunny raced toward another target. The woman yelped and tried to shoot the fluffy assaulting creature to no avail when it seemed to move like lightning. Blurring as he dodged her crossbow bolts. It lunged past her, the crossbow in her hands ripped from her grip. It landed several feet away on top of the ranged weapon.

"My bowgun! The little rascal took it!"

The Bunny seemed to sniff at it a few times before chomping down on the weapon. The splintering of its wooden frame and popping of the bolts holding the bands of metal together elicited a new feeling . . . fear. The young woman's bowgun was bitten in half by a creature not even half its size.

"If that thing bites us . . . we're going to die."

The Bunny lunged again, this time landing on the same poor woman's face and knocking her to the ground. She screamed, trying to grab it before he could sink its teeth into her. Instead, they could only watch in horror as it raised a rear paw.

"Get it off of me! Get it off . . . bleh guha!" Her cries cut off with a rapid series of bunny thumps to her forehead. The rapidity made her skull bounce off the ground like a ball being dribbled. Amelia couldn't count how many times her partner's head rebounded off the ground, but it wasn't for long. The woman twitched as the white rabbit sat on her head. Looking closer, she noticed that the little creature was looking right at her.

The Bunny had used his unarmed weapon skill [ _Thumper Strike_ ]. A fifteen hit combination of rapid bunny thumps that did negligible damage, but did tons of stunning affliction. The young woman was merely unconscious, but they didn't need to know that. The Bunny knew it was not allowed to kill, so it did not go for killing blows as it was instructed. Hazuki knew this as well, but it was hard not to laugh at the fluffy ball of fuzz knocking them senseless. Compared to some of the previous defensive sprees it had gone on before today, this was like a comedy routine.

One of their team members, seeing how his fellow Theocracy member brutalized, dropped his short sword and ran. Amelia screamed after him incredulously.

"Hey! Come back here! There's no way to know what else is out there!"

The rabbit made another squeaking noise and the group backed away several steps as from the tree line, a pair of wolves the size of horses with what looked to be hardened hide at their shoulders and larger fangs than though possible padded into the open. The Bunny squeaked again and pointed with a paw as he sat up on its hindquarters. It pointed in the direction of the man that had just run away. The two wolves let loose chilling howls and raced off in the direction of their fleeing man. Half a moment later, they heard his scream and the wolves howled again and there was silence.

[ _Summon Nature's Ally III_ ] could bring forth Dire Wolves and with The Bunny's level, could summon more, but chose not to. The wolves followed The Bunny's orders and had actually dragged the fainted man to a holding room.

Amelia and Left of the Clearwater Scriptures however, began making last prayers to the Six Great Gods for mercy in the afterlife. Readying her saber, she nodded once to her fellow teammate. They rushed the little furball as a pair and she slashed low, hoping that it would jump up to avoid her attack. It did so and she smirked. Left Ramrod unleashed his trademark left straight that had enough power to knock out a bear.

He felt contact with the bunny rabbit and pulled his fist back to let loose a follow up charge. However his target had disappeared. The woman possessing green hair sipped her cup of hot drink calmly with one eye open and looking at him. A subtle smirk crossed the woman's lips and he frowned. What did she find so humorous?

Amelia swatted at his arm and he recoiled as he saw the furry devil leap from his gauntlet. Had it grabbed hold of his fist? Amelia cried out and he refocused to see the bunny now clenching onto her sword arm. She punched it in the head in attempt to remove the little fluffy beast. However it was to no avail as she withdrew her fist revealing no effect. She shook her arm violently in desperation only to have the white creature stick steadfast.

Hazuki knew that The Bunny's Reaping Mauler class trait [ _Supreme Grapple Master_ ] would render trying to counter it grabs and clinging nature a moot point. It was why if The Bunny felt like cuddling . . . well you just did whether you wanted to or not. Unless you had a [ _Freedom of Movement_ ] spell active, you weren't getting away unless you had some special ability that let you escape from such a thing without fail.

Of course the more gruesome side of the coin was if The Bunny wanted to maul you to death with its teeth, and it had the order to do so, you would be mauled to death with no escape. She personally was quite content to be The Bunny's friend.

The little bane of the Clearwater Scripture's existence leg go of Amelia's arm during a particularly fierce upswing and went flying over to the rest of their remaining team. The group dispersed and tried to make distance between each of them. Their efforts were wasted as The Bunny dashed from person to person, each of them receiving a flying head butt like Matthias did. One of them was knocked unconscious when it hit him in the head. The other was not so fortunate as he staggered backward before being yanked up and over by his own scarf and flying five feet backward. He landed on his back and tumbled over himself a bit before The Bunny landed on his back.

"I I-I surrender . . ." The Bunny tilted its head to the side before wriggling its nose and hopping off of him.

Amelia and Left were all that remained. She turned to the woman sitting and drinking whatever the hell it was.

"We didn't come here to harm anyone. We only were asked to investigate tellings of an angel! Can't you call off your familiar?"

Hazuki set her cup down with methodical attention next to the small earthen ware pot that piped steam on occasion.

"Bunny-dono is no familiar or magical construct of elder design. A Guardian of The Lair as I am . . . is what Bunny-dono is blessed with alongside my peerage. The information that thou seek possesses the potential to bring ill intent and destruction at the hands of thine masters. Thou hast witnessed with thine own eyes the many varied races living here in peace and co-existence. Wouldst thine masters hold that sacred?"

The Bunny had ceased aggressive subjugation maneuvers to simply sit opposite of Hazuki with Amelia and Left between them both.

Amelia cursed under her breath. She did not possess a baptismal name unlike many of her teammates. It was not because she did not believe that the Six Great Gods had existed, but that she did not understand the logic behind such anti-demi-human sentiments. Or at least, she didn't see the reason for "purging" the non-humans as the majority of the Theocracy did in order to "preserve mankind".

The Minotaur Sage came to mind. He was definitely not human, but had he not introduced an astonishing amount of comforts that they took advantage of now? The whole idea of a self working fan. A chilling ice box. Not to mention other amenities. Would killing others of his kind result in such potential being lost?

The Elf Kingdom was a personal, national issue of pride and decency. The kidnapping of one their strongest and her rape and impregnation was an affront to the nation. Not to mention morality . . . the bastard.

Yet she knew that they would not. They would find this enclave of mixed races unacceptable at best. Blasphemy at worst. Then what? Would the higher ups actually risk dividing their military attention further against the guerrilla tactics the elves employed? Never mind the plight of their direct neighbors, the Dragon Kingdom and their slowly dying nation to the Beastmen.

"I . . . I cannot say that they would. We have quite a lot keeping us occupied though. So it would not happen."

"Not for now perhaps. Fie, but it would happen when thine nation is liberated from such obligations. Such is the tendencies of such a nation founded on religious upbringing. Slane Theocracy soldier."

Amelia froze. This woman knew where they were from. Did that mean that the rumors Thousand Eyes Astrology sent them here to investigate true? Was a celestial being here? There was no other way to explain how this woman . . . this Guardian she hailed herself as . . . would know such a thing when they had said nothing. They wore no recognizable symbols of allegiance either.

Left Ramrod charged the sitting woman. Amelia could only watch in stunned bewilderment as he attacked someone that Amelia was beginning to think was even more potentially deadly than this bunny that had made them look like drunk bar brawlers than infiltrators.

She could guess with very high odds of success, why he charged the woman.

One, they were obviously never going to make it out of here. This would be their graves.

Two, she knew their nation of origin. That was damning in their line of work. Perhaps the denizens of this "Lair" did not know of them and really were just hiding. However if they did have such guardians, then did that mean that they also had a military?

Three, maybe, not likely in her mind, but maybe, if he could knock this woman out, then the bunny would focus on healing her and allow them a moment to try to get away.

Yet when he got within three feet of her, the woman sighed and shook her head.

Amelia knew she had not blinked, yet she rubbed her eyes after she witnessed what happened next.

The woman went from sitting with her legs tucked under her, to standing behind Left Ramrod with a beautiful curved blade, a katana. After images seemed to float by him as she struck him not once, but ten different times in ten different locations around his body. All the attacks struck simultaneously, yet no sound was heard. She materialized behind him like a phantom from a haze as the images faded away. He stiffened and gasped, but didn't jerk around like a man struck by a blade. The whole attack lasted a mere second.

She sheathed her blade with silence that made Amelia hold her breath. The soft "ching" of her hand guard meeting sheath was the only thing that seemed to break this "spell". Left Ramrod fell forward stiffer than a plank of wood, into the pillow that Hazuki had been sitting on. The sea green haired woman lowered her sheathed weapon.

"What . . . what was that?" Amelia paled. Not a speck of dirt, blade of grass, or even wind blew to betray the woman's movements, much less strike. There had not been a sound other than her final moment of sheathing. She had heard of this about the far South nation of Bakamatsu Genpei.

A Kensei . . . Sword Saint. A master of the already esteemed and exotic "katana". Her technique, her poise, the utter dead silence of such a martial art . . . and without speaking the command words or naming her assault either! What was such a powerful person doing guarding such a random location?

"Fear not for thine nakama." Her word confused Amelia. Did _nakama_ refer to Left? "I did not slay him. His chakra points are blocked and he is unconscious and momentarily paralyzed until the effects fade. Thou mayest praise mine liege-lord for mine blade's mercy."

The katana was drawn again and Amelia swallowed. She was no expert, but the sharp side of the blade was inverse of the cutting edge of a katana. What kind of weapon?

"Sakabatou. The reverse bladed sword that cannot slash normally. Enchanted at creation as a sacred blade of pacifism. I may wield it when ordered to not fell mine foe."

Hazuki knew that the blade was something of a joke weapon, only capable of ever dealing stun damage. All of her techniques became non-lethal with it.

In face of all of this, Amelia fell to her knees. Casting her saber aside, she voice shook.

"I'm done . . . I surrender."

The sound of a dragging body made her turn to see the wolves from earlier dragging her fleeing teammate back to them. He was knocked out and they dragged him by his sleeves. Leaving him beside the others unconscious, they padded over to the bunny rabbit and sniffed and huffed once each before leaving their presence. So the rabbit had called them. This was all too much for her and she sobbed in despondence.

"No need for the tears young one."

The new voice made her look up to its origin and she could only stare in awe.

The angel . . .

"It's . . . it's true . . ." she breathed as a whisper. Her world saw white.

* * *

 **Tildeus**

* * *

Terramist could not believe it . . . he refused to believe it! It was madness. What food wielded magic stronger than his? She was food!

The fury that raged in her now glowing green eyes bespoke power unbridled. Emerald wisps of magical wind and spiraling zephyrs encircled the open grassland that they both stood on. She had countered every spell he could use. Even when he had tried to kill her with close combat, she had proven that she was nimble, dodging his attacks and then casting without effort in melee!

She pointed a finger at him and the lucent green winds froze, forming blades of emerald air. The beastman khan roared and charged at her.

"[ _Rexcalibur_ ]." The blades surged and rushed forth. Slashing him the pieces before he could even get close again. It was all over in an instant, the brilliant winds died out the moment he hit the earth. Dead to the world.

The rest of Terramist's band either began to flee in terror or surrender. The forces Cecilia commanded took those surrendering into custody, binding them with magically enchanted ropes. The humans that had been corralled as food for his band were being healed, fed, and comforted following their liberation. The Lord and Knight Commander both approached their superior with a bit of caution. It was extraordinarily rare to see her enraged, yet Terramist had succeeded, and paid with his life.

"My lady, what shall we do with the prisoners?"

"Treat them humanely. From what we gathered from the wolf woman, a number of them may have been forced on pain of death or worse to follow that bastard's orders. Sent a detachment to their camp and recover the dead for a proper burial. Take only those with the mental and physical fortitude to do so. I fear that this will be a gruesome assignment."

The two men bowed and left to take care of their orders. The sounds of huge wingbeats approached them and she looked up to see a pair of dragons flying her direction. Though several of her soldiers made to defend their positions, she held a hand up to call off their defense. She could see Luserina flying with them.

"This is new. Perhaps a message or the work of our Liege Draconis?"

As the dragons landed several yards from her, Luserina approached her after landing.

* * *

 **Tildeus Outskirts**

* * *

Khan Ziang Lu Quan shuddered as he swallowed. The small squad of beastmen with him did the same and a few of them had been shivering in fear. The defense that the woman of emerald hair had rallied with her soldiers had been nothing like what any of them had encountered previously. The ferocity of her magic had also scared them.

Then the dragons had shown up with an armored flier and they were talking like old friends. Khan Ziang had been right to follow his instinct and observe the area in person. There was no way he would have believed a report like this.

"Let us be off. I do not intend to challenge such mighty opponents."

The group retreated. Lu Quan now had a lot more to worry about than food sources outside of humans. Dragons had gotten involved at last. It would be the end of them all.

* * *

 **Character Profile 14**

* * *

 **Hazuki Ame-no-Murakumo Hokushin**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Guardian of The Lair, Blatt Meister, Kensei

 **Residence:** The Lair

 **Alignment:** Chaotic Neutral (-50 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Kitsune = 15 lvs.; Tenko = 10 lvs.; Inari's Messenger = 5 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Samurai = 15 lvs.; Blade Lord = 10 lvs.; Sword Saint = 5 lvs.; True Blade = 5 lvs.; Guardian = 10 lvs.; Yojimbo = 5lvs.; Duelist = 5 lvs.; Counter Guardian = 10 lvs.; Tsubame Gaeshi = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 [30 Racial Levels/70 Class Levels]

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 80

 **MP:** 50

 **Physical Attack:** 95

 **Physical Defense:** 80

 **Dexterity:** 80

 **Magical Attack:** 20

 **Magical Defense:** 70

 **Resistances:** 80

 **Special:** 120

* * *

 **Reviewer Responses**

* * *

 **Okay, before you all . . . dodges arrows and pitchforks.**

 **OKAY! Yeeesh . . . angry people . . .**

 **I know the Tildeus encounter between Terramist and Cecilia was a flash forward moment, but it will be presented in FULL glory later. This chapter is the longest I have written in a while at over 13k words and over 28 pages in length. Adding in the fight at Tildeus would have added at the minimum another 8k words and 14 or 15 pages alone.**

 **There is a lot to be said for a nice meaty chapter, but the reverse is true for a chapter that is TOO long. Patience, it will come to fruition. For now, we prepare to return to Artorias and her struggles with the Holy Roble Kingdom.**

 **Thank you all for your patience with me getting this huge chapter done. Remember to drop a line!**

* * *

 **Lew89:** 8k word count may seem long, and it is for most people when writing, but it isn't when reading . . . at least when the content engrosses the reader. The average 8k word count equates roughly . . . ROUGHLY . . . to around 15 to 17 pages depending on how many times I have to space and adjust for conversations and talking between characters. Chapters with very little talking can have just as many words but get cut down to around 12 or 14 pages on a word processor when using 12 font. Lol. Glad you are enjoying it. XD

 **The Reaper of Death445:** Don't you love it when that happens? XP

 **Solarblaster:** Oh don't worry. It's coming up . . . VERY soon. Muhahaha. Is it evil of me to enjoy writing this?

 **Pervy Sage Chuck:** Well . . . if you didn't notice . . . nope, they did not have ye Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch. Wouldn't have done anything to The Bunny anyways . . . he's too high a level. I get the feeling that the Holy Hand Grenade would be a Cash Shop Item . . . waaaaaait . . . . IDEA! Muahahahahaah!

 **MadDan90:** Hope this chapter got everyone going. The Bunny fight was hilarious fun to write. Wrong lair indeed.

 **Ilireanwri:** Yeah, I kinda wrote myself into a multi-cliffhanger fiasco . . . The Tildeus fight was too much to add into this chapter . . . :(

It will appear in a later chapter after we get back from Artorias's side of the story again.

 **Peroroncino:** Careful what you wish for sir . . .

 **Omegadramon2:** I'm getting there . . . it's on the horizon . . .

 **Thristan:** Via religious zealotry and misplaced ideology . . . yes.

 **Akuma-Heika:** Ah, caught those did you? I wondered who would. You get a cookie.

 **Guest:** I know right? Bunny of Doom . . .

 **UndeadLord22:** Indeed it does. I did not insert him into the first chapter just to be a filler role.

 **Awayuki:** Perhaps . . . woe be unto all caught up in THAT fight.

 **Dimension Disorder:** Hopefully this provided an answer or two.


	19. Chapter 17: International Intrigue

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. Suppor the official Light Novel releases. Okay. We're back to Artorias and Avalon's side of the story. Who's ready to see the antics of the Holy Roble Kingdom?

* * *

 **Chapter 16: International Intrigue**

* * *

Alkaid Ushiwakamaru Kai stood out on a balcony overlooking the city below her. The city belonging to Queen Artorias Faye Pendragon, Queen of Avalon. Her ancestral aunt, and the foster sister of her ancestor Shin Yoshitsune Kai. The revelation of his identity and relation to Avalon had taken her completely unprepared. Yet who was she to question living legends?

Mordred and Gareth had explained what they could to her concerning Yoshitsune and Artorias's relationship. He and Artorias had been taken in by the water spirit Vivienne, the Lady of Lake and they had grown close until their division by their respective foster families. The two reunited after she had ascended to the Queen of Avalon and he to the High Daimyo of Bakamatsu Genpei. The two societies had converged on each other via the powerful magicks invoked by both leaders. The reunion had caused quite the stir among both cultures and their people.

The two nations had kept in close contact ever since.

At least until the "Kamui Mado no Soen"; or the "Spirit Window of Estrangement" event more than two hundred years ago when Yoshitsune-sama and his Seven Shoguns had arrived in their section of the far southern portions of the continent. Their kenjutsu and magic changing their culture and way of life dramatically. The clans of the Bakamatsu Genpei were the seven named after each of his fellow compatriots.

Out of all of them, only one remained alive. He chose isolation and sought higher enlightenment. The Seven Great Clans were: Gozen, Musashi, Saito, Nobunaga, Seta, Amaterasu, and Tsukiyomi.

Hers by virtue of the leadership of the nation's founder, was Kai. Though he had stated that he derived the name "Kai" not from the Joppon-eez but Chai-Niez definition as "Victory".

Clan Gozen was founded by Lady Tomoe Gozen. The beautiful and graceful mistress of the naginata and horse-mounted archery. Her clan was known for their cavalry, female samurai proficient with the naginata, and mounted archers. They loved the color lavender and white.

Clan Musashi had been created by Miyamoto Musashi and held the prestige even to this day as masters of Nito-ryu, or the dual wielding katana style of combat. If the Sword Saints of Bakamatsu Genpei were terrors on the field of battle, then a Musashi samurai was a force of nature.

The Saito clan was half of the nation's peacekeeping force. Founded by the "Wolf of Bakamatsu" and preeminent duelist Hajime Saito-sama. Perfectionists of the left handed Gototsu single handed thrust and staunch upholders of the law.

Of all the clans within Bakamatsu Genpei was the notorious Nobunaga clan. Known by all as the Demon Kings of Heaven for they headed up the formal military of the nation. As fierce samurai and kenjutsu was not enough, they also excelled in the most hidden weapon of all. Firearms. Deemed an absolute last resort in the defense of the nation, cannons and firearms roared four times in the past in the defense of the nation and each and every time, the opposition had been laid to waste with such ease that even the Nobunaga's had been forced to agree with their progenitor's warnings about their overwhelming power. As such they were only granted to the most trustworthy and responsible of individuals.

Seta Souji-sama had founded his clan and they formed the second half of the peacekeeping force with the Saito clan. As brother clans, they were very closely knit and their camaraderie showed in countless historical battles the nation had gone through. Together with the Saito clan, they formed the Shinsengumi.

Amaterasu-sama had founded her namesake clan as the spiritual and magical center of the nation and their light shined upon them all. They were also healers and maternity caretakers as life givers. They were held sacred by all the clans and their word could only be countered by the Kai or Tsukiyomi clans.

Tsukiyomi-sama was both feared and respected by all in the nation and he was the only remaining living founder. He remained on Mt. Tenshin to the west of the capital of the nation: Tenryu. He was a master of kenjutsu, but more than that, a representation of death and the night. His clan presided over funerals and the winter ceremonies, ensuring that the deceased were not desecrated and passed on safely. A Tsukiyomi member was never far from an Amaterasu member as they were the opposites of the same koku so to speak. They kept evil spirits away from mothers giving birth, made sure that evils did not influence a new born. They also took confessions of the dying to help them pass peacefully and without grudges or regrets. Theirs was a heavy burden, and many married outside their clan to ensure that they themselves did not fall to despair.

Alkaid wondered about how Tsukiyomi-sama would react to the meeting of Avalon again?

Then there was her clan, the Royal Clan. Kai. The surname of "Kai" was something that was earned in their clan rather than given. Those that had earned the surname officially were burdened with the responsibilities of leading the nations and clans when the need arose. Her elder brother and sister had also earned the surname, but unlike them, Alkaid had gone abroad to better understand the nations and world around them.

She had their blessings and prayers, and she had kept in touch over the years. Yet this was her seventh year away from home. Now Avalon was here, she was standing in the castle of their ancient allies. How would they all react if she told them that Avalon's Queen called her ancestor family not in a figurative way, but literal? She couldn't imagine it!

A light patter of footsteps drew her attention and she beheld a woman of unearthly beauty. She had learned swiftly that this woman was a fey. An assistant to the Queen of Knights and very capable. Lady Evalyn was a nymph in specific; the first that Alkaid had ever seen as the creatures of the fey realms were exceedingly rare to encounter given their reclusive, shy demeanors. Or at least that was what she had believed until now. She had seen more fey here in Avalon than she ever would have dared to dream of in her lifetime.

"Queen Artorias wishes to see you in her study. I shall escort you to her."

Alkaid could only nod and fall into step with the powerful fey woman. As they walked down the pristine halls, guards and castle staff gave the Evalyn respectful nods or bows. Alkaid was also given similar treatment as a guest of the Queen of Knights. As far as she could tell, she was the first guest the queendom had seen in quite some time.

Arriving at a set of doors that were engraved with the same skyward roaring dragon that she had seen on standards and other banners around the castle and on the tabards of certain knights and soldiers, she could only assume that this was Queen Artorias's study.

Evalyn did not bother knocking, only bowed slightly and spoke with a clarion clear voice.

"My Queen, I have brought Lady Alkaid as you requested."

"Enter."

The doors opened to reveal a giant chamber with an open air balcony the the left of a massive desk made from black marble of such quality that she had to take a second look to be sure it was just marble. A set of shields and swords lined the walls with the pendragon blue pennants and standard hung tastefully around the support pillars of the study. There was a painting of Queen Artorias at the center of twelve warriors of Avalon, the Knights of the Round in their entirety. They all stood at attention in one painting, but the next one was them striking odd poses and Artorias was laughing at their antics.

It wasn't really that different from when she and her siblings had horsed around when they could escape the trappings of their duties. She then came across a painting that was Artorias in a seat with a scarlet haired man sitting next to her with a smile on his face. They were both dressed in their panoply. She noticed the rings on their fingers. Was this Lord Brightblade?

A low growl from the desk drew her attention back to where Artorias sat and Alkaid flinched before taking a wary step backward. Crouched low in a pouncing position was a wolf the size of a warhorse! She had never seen such a large wolf. From behind her, Evalyn sighed before speaking in an admonishing tone.

"Cavall! Shame on you! She is Mistresses's guest. Be nice."

"Indeed. Cavall, calm down and go back to sleep. If you can't, Evalyn can take you out to the gardens for a bit."

The giant wolf glanced back over its shoulder at its mistress before huffing with a grunt and padding toward the door. Completely ignoring Alkaid, the Hoarhound nudged the doors open and went out. A maid on the other side shrieked in surprise as he left. Evalyn bowed quickly to Artorias and Alkaid before gliding out of the room and scolding Cavall again for frightening one of the maids as she followed him out to the gardens.

An annoyed sigh left Artorias's lips.

"I apologize for Cavall's behavior. For such an elder Hoarhound, he is surprisingly childish at times. He does not recognize your scent and is very protective of me."

Alkaid nervously glanced back at the doors, expecting the giant head of the wolf to reappear and glare at her.

"I see. Is he like that to your subjects when he goes out with you?"

Artorias gestured to a chair before her desk and Alkaid bowed before seating herself. Even as Guild Leader, she had never seen such a mass of papers and other documents. Several maps were laid out across the massive desk as well. If she didn't mistake her eyesight, the Queen of Knights even had a small pyramid of oriental scrolls on a bamboo tray.

"No, he is not. He rather likes children and is decently loved by the people. You however, smell of foreign lands. Give him time and he will warm to you."

Alkaid nodded her understanding. Artorias finished a lengthy looking missive and set it to the side to let the ink dry.

"Speaking of warming to you. I too am want to better know my many times descended niece."

The acknowledgement was both an exhilarating and terrifying feeling. To be recognized by the legendary queen herself as family; even by distant relation was euphoric. The other half of her though was terrified at the idea of letting this woman down. The tales of her accomplishments and those of her Knights of the Round were literal fantasies. That she truly existed and could probably tell her first hand accounts of those legends made Alkaid feel humbled by comparison.

"What could I possibly say that could compare to the feats you and your knights have accomplished?"

Artorias frowned slightly and shook her head in a way that reminded Alkaid of her late mother.

"Feats of daring do and other such tales have their place, but this is not one of them. I want to know Alkaid, the person. Not of Alkaid with whichever titles and epithets granted you by others. Just as I am merely Artorias, the woman who is your many times ancestral aunt for the time being. What foods do you like or dislike. Did you have siblings? What was your childhood like? Your home? The kinds of hobbies you have pursued. Those kinds of things."

Alkaid found herself looking at Artorias in slight disbelief. The woman leaned forward on her desk with her head propped up by an arm upright resting on the black marble desktop. Her brunette tressed spilled about her face. The faintly glowing eyes glittered with curiosity and . . . was that mischief?

"Tell you what Alkaid, I will go first if that is what it will take to get you to loosen up a bit." Alkaid could only look at her aunt with confusion. "I can't stand spiders."

Alkaid's eyebrows shot to the ceiling. The Queen of Avalon couldn't stand spiders? Really? At her expression, Artorias nodded empathetically.

"They're gross. Eight legs, eight eyes, grotesque fangs and carapaces that give me the willies! I normally let either Lancelot or Draconis handle those threats. They go on about how many spiders help keep the insects under control, but I don't see it that way . . . argh." The woman shuddered and grit her teeth. "Especially the ones that eat more than just bugs. More like horses . . . or larger . . ."

This was interesting . . . Alkaid made a hard mental note to NOT introduce her aunt to the assassins of Bakamatsu Genpei that utilized spiders as their primary resource. That would not do at all. Alkaid had the misfortune to run into a Man-Eater spider. The size of a small house and a set of fangs to match and legs the length of a long boat. She herself shuddered at the memory.

"I can relate." She found herself saying. "I suppose I could start with my immediate family. I am the youngest of three. My elder brother is the eldest and my older sister is two years ahead of me."

Artorias nodded and silently urged her to continue.

"My brother is Makoto Kohryu Kai and is a Sword Saint. He leads our formal army and is heir to Bakamatsu Genpei. He has a stern streak, but means well. I think his poetry needs some work, but he finds it relaxing so I learned to accept it."

"Do you write poetry as well? Haiku perhaps?"

Even knowing that her ancestor was her brother, Artorias still managed to surprise her with her knowledge of their terms and customs. Something as innocuous as the style of poetry's name was not something that she thought the queen would be aware of.

"N-no. I don't. I'm afraid that is one reason I put up with it. I have no gift for poetry."

Artorias laughed and Alkaid found it enriching. Perhaps it was the natural charisma she possessed that made such an action so easy to get caught up in.

"You need not worry about impressing me in such a manner. I have no gift for poetry either. That is more Gareth's pastime."

She nodded, filing that bit of information away for later.

"My sister is Hotaru Hana Kai. She walks the path of a miko and talisman master. There are few in charge of the spiritual arts more respected than her. She loves her koto and flutes. I like to play with her when I could."

Artorias's eyes brightened a bit at the mention of musical instruments.

"Oh? Which instrument do you play?"

Alkaid fidgeted under the eager gaze.

"I play the shakuhachi."

Artorias smiled and nodded. She did not press for anything more, but Alkaid could tell that she was thinking of something. That glint of mischief had returned and Alkaid knew that something would happen in the near future. She just knew it!

* * *

 **Castle Pendragon**

* * *

Lancelot Du Lac, the Knight of the Lake and World Champion, filed away another set of paperwork. He had heard about the meeting with Calca Bessarez from Gareth. He had not been impressed. The secretary who worked diligently at her desk noticed his disgruntled aura.

"Lord Du Lac? Is there something amiss?"

Sighing heavily, he glanced out his window before standing and walking to the glass portal. Unlatching the locks, he gently, yet purposefully pushed them open to let in the ocean breeze. A few of the papers ruffled, but most of them remained in place. He had set paper weights on those files he had finished and those he had yet to get to. Who knew they would be performing so many secretarial duties?

"Yes actually. It's this situation with the Holy Roble Kingdom. This nation is as the Queen has stated. A powder keg waiting for the match to be lit. It reminds me too much of previous conflicts. I'd rather not have to draw steel if we can help it, but Her Majesty is right. This is too volatile. It makes me wonder if there is anything we can do."

His secretary frowned at the papers on her desk. Setting aside her quill and stopping her ink well, she stood and joined her superior at the window. She was not of noble birth and her status as secretary to The World Champion was something she had earned via hard work and perseverance. Over the time she had worked under the Knight of the Lake, she had learned that he was a man who appreciated honest opinion and frank speech. It made her more . . . as her peers put it . . . "audacious" to speak to their esteemed betters in such a manner.

"Lord Du Lac. I do not think it wise to try and help this Holy Queen unless she herself specifically requests such a thing. Even then, I would honestly hope that we would not even if she did."

The man by her side turned to look at her in surprise. He had not expected such a hard stance from her.

"Oh? Go on."

She took a deep breath and continued. Lancelot Du Lac was generally a temperate man in relation to his moods. Normally, other nobles might have rebuked her for such thoughts. Yet he was curious.

"Such an action, even invited by this Holy Queen of Roble could be construed as political manipulation and invasion. I have read through the records of our past conflicts and it is a repeated trend every so often since long before I was born. Some would say that our gracious queen's actions are selfish, acing only in the interest of Avalon, when in reality she does want to help everyone she can. Unfortunately such a thing is too idealistic and naive. If she can't protect us, then how can she claim to do the same for those not of Avalon? Forgive me. I did not mean to ramble so."

He merely chuckled at her.

"To help others you must be able to first help yourself. If you can't take care of your own health, then how will you do so for the next person? The eternal conundrum. Fair enough."

He patted her on the shoulder and closed the windows.

"I believe that is enough work for the day. It's past mid-day meal. You are dismissed. Relax and I will see you again upon the morrow."

She curtsied with a bow before excusing herself and leaving to return to her family.

As she did so, Mordred rounded the corner. She bowed to him before continuing on. The two men nodded in greeting as Lancelot closed his office door and locked it. They fell into step with one another as they proceeded back toward the eastern wing of the castle.

"Something troubling you old friend? Copper for your thoughts?"

"Just concerned with what may be coming over the horizon so to speak. I read your report on the meeting and this Calca Bessarez. She seems to have a good heart at her core, but is woefully ignorant and naive."

Mordred nodded carefully. He had a feeling that he knew why his friend was getting antsy. He was one of those "save the maiden" kind of guys. Fortunately, he could be reasoned with too.

"I know what you're thinking old friend. She has her own issues and people protecting her. You know our powers upset the balance here by a massive margin. We've all read the report teleported to us the night after Draconis met with Queen Draudillon of the Dragon Kingdom. He did not even use his Shield Weapon Skills, Defensive Skills from his classes, or his reactive Racial Skills against a man called the strongest in their kingdom. What would that mean if you. A World Champion level combatant were to save her from her woes?"

Lancelot clenched a fist and sighed in frustration.

"I know what you're saying Mordred, but if we can . . ."

Mordred placed himself in front of his friend mid-stride, forcing Lancelot to either stop or run over his fellow Round Table Knight. A frown marred his face and Lancelot could see the same struggle brewing in his emerald green eyes. A firm hand shook his shoulder as Mordred took hold of it.

"I feel the same in the end Lancelot. However, just because we _can_ does not me that we _should_." He stressed the words "can" and "should" for extra emphasis. "Calca Bessarez is already crutched and politically cripple as it is. Don't dig her even deeper by playing the savior to her struggles. No one grows properly without learning to handle their hard decisions. If she asks it of us, I'm sure Artorias would reach out in friendship, but from everything we've seen and heard from Artorias's niece? No. Not this time my friend. Not unless we repeat the same mistakes from the Arcology War."

Lancelot grimaced and grit his teeth in both anger and sorrow. There had been so much pointless death and destruction, degrading of morality and justice that even acting against the tide had only brought them all even more suffering. The countless lives lost even when they had tried to help in good conscious.

"The road to hell is paved with good intentions. Those that cannot back their virtues with the appropriate level and type of power are doomed to bring more suffering than succor."

Mordred nodded in agreement to the World Champion's words.

"Indeed. Now. I highly suggest getting over that mindset about Calca Bessarez unless you want to have Gareth come after you? You'd have to fend her off with your blade if she finds out and takes your concern for Roble's Holy Queen the wrong way."

Lancelot shuddered. Grimly enough, from the Arthurian Tales, Gareth truly was as fierce as her tribute. A master combatant despite her nature, she indeed had fought against him with so much skill that he had dreaded to be shamed and thus called a truce and by the previous order of King Arthur, knighted Gareth on the spot. The reality was that if Gareth had been in the tournament to determine the 9th World Champion, Gareth might have claimed the title if she had been online that day. She was that talented, though she personally disliked fighting if she could avoid it. Gods have mercy if you cornered her into combat though.

"Don't remind me . . . Women are terrifying."

The two men laughed heartily at that.

"Good. Now then, it's nearly time for our patrols. Join me?"

"Thanks for the offer, but I'll take the northern side of the island."

Mordred shrugged and heft the sword at his hip. The weapon was not his panoply, but then again, the only person truly wielding their signature armaments was Artorias due to her position as their Queen.

"Ah, fair enough. Keep a keen eye out there Lancelot."

The man nodded in agreement before they parted ways.

* * *

 **Skies Above Pendragon Castle**

* * *

Gareth breathed deep the cold and crisp ocean air as she flew patrol to the north of their now island home. To her right, Claire flew with her heavier barded alicorn. She inwardly hoped that Alkaid and Artorias could get along. Yoshitsune's death had shocked them, but she knew that she had to remain strong and firm to ensure that her friend would recover well enough to keep walking their path.

Now though, she was waiting for Lancelot and his group to relieve her of her patrol duty. In all honesty, she was a bit tired after not having sleep terribly well. Claire had noticed her liege's condition and had offered to head up the patrol in her place so she could rest, but Gareth had remained resolute.

Despite the cold air, she yawned widely. Claire frowned in concern as her lady liege took a long swig from a thermos containing a strong blend of expensive coffee.

"Milady! Please, don't push yourself like this. You must rest. Please trust us to take care of our duties in your absence."

The other young women in their patrol nodded in agreement with their superior's words. All of them had been concerned for their commander as she seemed to be distracted and less attentive, stressed. All of them signs of something worrying her enough to affect her performance at even the most routine of actions.

"I will when Lancelot relieves us. It will not be long."

The rest of her female sky riders frowned in concern. She was never short with them. What was causing such concern for her that she was so aggravated?

* * *

 **Rimun -Delacroix Estate-**

* * *

Calca sat at the table in the meeting room where she had spoken with Artorias and her contingent. Albert and Alicia Delacroix sat to one side of the table observing what was going on. Neither governor or governess were terribly surprised by this development.

Kelart held a thoughtful countenance. Calca had told just finished giving them the details of the meeting between the her and the Queen of Knights. Remedios looked about ready to burst. Despite their different reactions to Calca's words, both sisters boiled within to some degree. Kelart did not turn to anger however, due to the details that Calca had mentioned.

The Queen of Knights held both men and women in extraordinary positions of power in her queendom. Her entourage had shown sharp insights and proposed reasonable questions for people of their caliber and level of authority. Their mannerisms spoke of experience in the political field and on the battlefield considering their reluctance to cause international incidents and call steel from scabbards. It showed to Kelart that these were no amateurs, but seasoned and well hardened veterans.

The fact that one of her people claimed that the queen had dragon blood also gave her much pause. Despite their subtle barb that Calca was inept and incapable in unifying their kingdom, dragon's blood was enough reason to quell her personal fury at Calca's being insulted. Did this Avalon possess multiple wielders of Wild Magic as the Argland Council States to the north? If so then they were in a very precarious position. The Old Magic . . . Wild Magic was horribly inefficient compared to Tier Magic, but its power for those with massive life force to draw upon was incredible.

Unlike her sister, Remedios clenched her teeth and fists under the table. To think that a whole city of demi-human loving humans with a demi-human calling herself a Queen of Knights was right on their western shore. Traitors to humankind is what they were. Subjecting themselves to a demi-human's rule . . . they had to be under her thrall, children threatened? Lovers as ransom?

Calca had described this "Artorias" as black scaled with horns and a tail. A demonic dragon blooded woman? The result of some unholy union of dragon and some poor human woman? Remedios's mind ran rampant with such thoughts.

Albert Delacroix could tell that nothing good was brewing inside the idiot paladin commander's head. Perhaps it was time to send a message to Black? Lord Pavel Baraja was far more sensible in many regards. However, he did notice that despite her internal seething at the jab the Queen of Knights and her entourage had left Calca with, she was sensible enough to realize that she was far from their league. The real question was whether or not she would try something incredibly foolish anyway.

Delacroix finished sealing a missive at his place at the table and motioned for a member of the staff to step forward. A young man approached to receive the sealed parchment.

"Take this to the swiftest courier we have in town. Tell them they are to deliver this missive directly to Black at the Great Wall."

He kept his voice sufficiently low to not attract the undue attention of the Twin Wings and Calca. Albert and his wife had decided late the previous night to go about strengthening their ties with Queen Artorias independently. They were not completely blind to the risk involved with doing so either. However, as a port city, they could easily claim trade relations and business claims and the Southern Kingdom would have little choice but to accept that for what it was.

The servant bowed and promptly left to carry out his charge. He was one of the servants there that night when the Queen of Knights and her entourage had arrived. There was no need to explain the importance of such a missive. Beside him, Alicia was wrapping up a letter to a friend of hers in the Kingdom of Re-Estize. She however had to utilized a water proof scroll case as she had magically preserved a large parchment to not smear its contents: a remarkably accurate portrait of Artorias that she had their painter who had been present during the meeting that night as well, create from memory of the Queen of Knights.

As they were more inclined towards adventurers, she took counsel from several of them and yet due to the Holy Kingdom's aversion to them, made business ties with groups from outside the nation. This portrait, along with her letter explaining who and why this was being sent, would be sent to the leader of Re-Estize's Blue Rose. Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra.

Alicia had taken great pains to ensure that the portrait was not only accurate, but hidden from the Twin Wings. The servant who took the letter and the scroll case with the portrait bowed to her and departed with the same sense of urgency that her counterpart had done with Albert's missive. From their location, it would take approximately a little over a week to arrive at the city that Blue Rose called their base of operations. As both a fellow noble and also a cleric of recognizable ability and an adventurer leader at Adamantite rank as well, Alicia viewed the younger woman well. Their correspondence was of mutual respect and recognition of the responsibilities of leadership regardless of Alicia's role in supporting her husband.

Calca herself, observed the Custodio sisters with an attentive eye. Her discussions with the Delacroix couple just before they had returned from their duties that night had made quite the impact on her. The way that Artorias Faye Pendragon had been able to silently communicate with her escorts and them with each other had deeply affected her. How long had they known each other and delved into political meetings of this caliber to be able to convey each others thoughts and feelings thus? Their interactions had made her realize just how unified and trusting she was of them and they of her. By comparison, could she even call herself a ruler?

The answer was obvious to her.

No.

No, she could not . . . Would not even dare to call herself a Holy Queen after witnessing such a level of solidarity. She had spoken numerous times about not her interests personally, but her interest in the well being of her people. Citizens that were not even all human! She accepted them if they cried out for succor and protection. They co-existed! Surely there were problems at times, but they were making it work from everything that she could gather.

That dean of the Magic Academy of Avalon, Lucretia Merces? She spoke of demi-humans as any other human and seemed like she had come from a different society and culture that made it seem as if she hailed from the Argland Council States. They had a demi-human society that existed in harmony with each other with the Dragon Councilors ruling their collective states.

"I believe that if we are to overcome the issues we are currently facing now, that I must step past my previous mindset and provide a better example for our people. I will be sending a messenger to call counsel with my elder brother Caspond in concerns with our rifts with the Southern Kingdom."

Her declaration stunned both sisters out of their brewing states. Kelart was flabbergasted. Calca had never wanted to hurt others or cause waves. Why would she talk that risk now? Had this Artorias made that much of an impression on her?

Remedios frowned and glared at Calca.

"Why should you have to? You are our Holy Queen, the people would move for you at a word."

"Would they Remedios? You know that the conservatives in the Southern Kingdom never approved of me taking the throne when my brother stepped down from the inheritance. They do not view women as capable as men in leadership roles."

Remedios growled rather loudly and the Delacroix couple raised a brow in unison at her reddening face.

"You're still the Holy Queen. They have to answer the call against the demi-human threat!"

"In self preservation perhaps, but not for me." Calca's words brought the sisters up short. They gaped at her words and her saddened expression. "The only reason that we have avoided infighting between our northern and southern brothers and sisters is because our military strength on both fronts is more or less equal. The Great Wall aside, if I had made even one critically bad decision in the few that I have made since taking the throne, I would have been ousted. More than likely via violence. If I am to earn their trust and make us truly strong and whole, then I must step out of my cocoon and actually rule. I cannot afford to merely sit and be the beacon that shines once and again to inspire the masses."

"Calca-sama . . ." Kelart was a bit awed by this sudden change in the woman she called a friend.

Remedios was confused. Who was this? This wasn't Calca that she shared a close birthday with.

"Wha? You're our Holy Queen Calca. The inspiration you bring to our troops promises us victory. Those old men in the Southern Kingdom are just jealous that you were crowned."

Calca sighed heavily. While that may have been true, was probably still true in many cases for the citizens in the Southern Kingdom, it did not apply to all of them.

"I inspire our Northern Kingdom's forces, but I do not lead them. Those 'Old Men' as you are putting it Remedios have rather solid concerns for my ascension to the throne those years ago. Brother Caspond stepped down as not to raise a riot and help avoid in-fighting. It did little to assuage their opinions though."

Both sisters frowned as they remembered those early days of Calca's reign.

"Governor Delacroix." Albert nodded respectfully in Calca's direction when she called him. "I would ask for your assistance in contacting Caspond in the Southern Kingdom via a message sent by ship. It would be faster than an overland courier by horse."

"Very well Your Majesty. Merely let me know when you are ready with your message and I shall have it sent on our swiftest cutter."

Calca smiled softly in thanks.

* * *

 **-Unknown-**

 **Argland Council State**

* * *

Platinum Dragon Lord rested atop his set position at the meeting grounds. His fellow Dragon Councilors nodded deeply in greeting as they had arrived. The Blue Sky Dragon Lord wore a serious expression as he landed. This was not one of the usual periodical gatherings of the Dragon Council and Parliament, but an emergency meeting based on recent news that had come to light about various foreign neighbors and their goings on.

The meeting locations was an absolutely massive open air atrium. Five mesas of considerable size served as the resting spots of the Dragon Councillors, one for each member. Arranged like a five pointed star, the location was named "The Dragon Star Gathering". It served as the official meeting location for the Parliament and Council. Down below, the Parliament would gather.

The entirety of the Parliament consisted of demi-humans of nearly every kind. Goblins, dwarves, elves who had fled the wars to the south, there were even Zoastia, centuars, and orthrous. Humans also lived in the Argland Council States and there were many, many strict laws for those that considered them food. Fortunately, many of the races present did not actually have any peculiar preference to human flesh as a food source.

Many Orthrous and Zoastia preferred beef and horse meat, though fish and seafoods caught by the nation's mermen and mermaids were also a delicacy. The elves and centuars were excellent keepers of agriculture and fruits and vegetables were their preferences when enhanced with fish and lighter meats like chicken or other edible fowl.

No one was blind to the issues with the human nations and their fears and prejudices against demi-humans. Nor were they oblivious to the natures of their cousins across the continent. However, as the Dragon Councilors had ruled, theirs was a nation of co-existence out of mutual survival. Those desiring to become citizens were tightly screened by members of the Parliament and the Council Dragon Lords themselves. If you harbored ill-will towards demi-humans or viewed humans as food and were not willing to curb your tendency, then you were not very likely to gain citizenship and while you would not necessarily be ousted from the nation immediately, you would be watched. Very closely.

Platinum Dragon Lord took in the view of the many different races gathered and nodded. Nearly all called to attend the emergency meeting had arrived. The enormous open area below him easily held them all. More than 500 in number.

"As member of the Dragon Council, I humbly thank all of you for responding to the summons for this emergency gathering of the Council and Parliament." All the talking and discussions below ceased with his voice carrying mightily on the air. "This meeting today is called in response to developments in our neighboring country of Re-Estize. In addition we have received an important development from the Baharuth Empire, and lastly . . . a piece of historical news that could affect us all from Roble to the south."

His words stirred murmurs from all down below. Re-Estize was their direct neighbor and as such, news came from the nation on a fairly consistent basis. The Baharuth Empire, even as they waged war annually on Re-Estize, had their Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Argland and as such was also kept track of.

Platinum Dragon Lord's mention of the Holy Kingdom of Roble however, was the largest and juiciest piece of gossip for all present. The kingdom was isolated and while they were no where near as religious or fanatic in their beliefs, still loathed demi-humans due to their cousins in the Abelion Hills. It colored them in a very bad light and many of the races residing in Argland had distanced themselves somewhat from their cousins in that regard. If anything because one did not want to have a Dragon Lord breathing literally down your neck if you could help it.

"The Roble Kingdom? Really?"

"Did the Queen die? Was there a rebellion?"

"I wonder if those of Abelion Hills finally overran them . . . that would be a tragedy for the innocent."

The murmurs died out as Blue Sky Dragon Lord spoke next.

"To all present, we first call to the speakers podium, the representative from Re-Estize."

A man dressed in foreign dignitaries attire stood from a seat close to the speaker's podium. Whoever was there and talking effectively had the floor. That being said, for a human to stand at the podium could be a terrifying experience. With more demi-humans than humans represented by the Parliament and five Dragon Lords looking down on you from up high . . . most human representatives did not possess the spine for such oration.

This man however, was not as spineless. He was sent by King Ramposa III himself and was not going to show his nervousness. Especially when he heard the Platinum Dragon Lord mention a representative from the Baharuth Empire was present with his own news. With the harvest season closing in, he knew that the Empire was going to declare their annual war. With the news he possessed, he was confident that in spite of the annual war to be inevitably waged, this time would be different. They had a new hero among their number.

"Dragon Lords of the Council and the Argland Parliament. Thank you for allowing me to speak to you all today. I bring news of the newest Adamantite Team of adventurers in Re-Estize."

The parliament nodded as they followed along. Announcing a new Adamantite level team officially was good form. It keep other nations in the know whenever they had to carry out missions that took them across borders. As the Adventurer's Guilds were international and thus not constrained officially by the nations in which they resided, keeping tabs on the teams active was good practice. It ensured that undue difficulties and mistaken identities were kept to a relative minimum.

It also help to better keep track of possible problem makers and ulterior motivated individuals.

"The group is lead by The Dark Hero Momon. The team is named Darkness."

An Orthrous reclining closer to the podium voiced his opinion loudly and those around him nodded in agreement.

"Such an ominous title and name for an adamantite team. Why such a moniker?"

"His epithet was given to him by other adventurers of lower ranks. He wears adamantite full plate of the highest quality and wield two giant adamantite blades too large for a man to wield single handed."

The dark black luster of adamantite was not lost to everyone present. It made for a convincing argument. Full plate was expensive in and of itself, but adamantite? Such a thing would be astronomical in price.

A centuar man voiced his question next. This gauntlet of inquiries was normal of the masses whenever news like this was presented. It helped in identifying them so they would not be mistaken for roving bandits and thieves.

"How many are in Darkness?"

"Two."

His answer sent waves through everyone. Only two? Most adventurer teams consisted of at least five or six. Not many went lower than four at the minimum. There were simply too many dangers to risk anything lower than that.

"Who is this Dark Hero Momon's partner?"

"She is called by the locals 'Beautiful Princess Nabe'. A foreign woman of great beauty who despite her young appearance, is capable of casting Tier III magic. Both members of Darkness are human."

Mention of Tier III magic made ripples in the ranks of the Parliament. From their mesas, the Dragon Lords each glanced at one another. Tier III magic from a young human woman? She would be one of an especially elite few. Still, a two person team with someone with such outstanding gear and a woman of very talented magical capabilities . . . what did they do for healing? Merely seek out high grade potions?

A member of the Parliament spoke out in curiosity.

"Tell, us, how long did it take these two to progress from Copper initiate to Adamantite, the most elite of rankings among a nation already known for having more than one Adamantite Team within its borders?"

"Two weeks."

Utter, uncontrolled, unilateral chaos ensued.

"Impossible!"

"You lie! No team has ever accomplished such a feat!"

"Blasphemy and heresy! This farce has been taken too far sir! A pox on your report!"

A cacophony of expletives and other such insults were hurled at the man who clenched his jaw. He knew that this bit of the information was too ludicrous for others to believe, yet all the paperwork and eye witnesses to Momon's deeds and those of Nabe were not just random people, but a fair amount of rather credible members of the kingdom's society.

The massive slap of a tail from the mesas above silenced all present. The crimson and ash scaled Dragon Councilor, Pyre Flame Dragon Lord thumped his mighty forked tail against his resting place. His voice clear to all as he spoke, easily carried his curiosity and suspicions.

"Despite my own suspicions of this claim, and the understandable reactions of the Parliament, we are not a mob! Quiet down." As the masses did so, he spoke directly at the representative from Re-Estize. His voice was a deep grumbling roil. "Two weeks is an unheard of accomplishment for such a rank. To leap every single rank in such a short time period begs to question where such a man hailed from to begin with. What accomplishments prove his worthiness of such a feat?"

The representative began to list the feats of Momon and Nabe. In his seat, the representative from the Baharuth Empire grit his teeth.

 _This man sounds a match for the Scarlet Swordsman and the Lavender Sky Lance who travels with him. Yet the Scarlet Swordsman and his partner are Workers. At least we have actual presentable proof._

A great many of the Parliament mumbled and murmured amongst each other in the face of the alleged accomplishments of the adventurer Momon and Nabe. Some of them were believable, others were outlandish.

From his place atop his mesa, Platinum Dragon Lord mentally frowned.

 _This Momon and Nabe of Darkness must be YGGDRASIL players. No denizen of this continent could possibly fight that vampire and live. Perhaps Zesshi Zetsumei using the equipment from the Six Players who became the Six Great Gods. But other Godkins? Not without inconceivable losses._

"Enough chatter. We have others with news to report as well. Next we call upon the foreign dignitary from the Baharuth Empire."

As he stood and proceeded up from to the central podium, the spokesperson of Re-Estize smirked at him. Despite the mixed opinions and beliefs about Darkness, it was something that would be on the Parliamentary's mind and that of the Dragon Lords as well.

The elves gnashed teeth at the Empire's representative and glared with hatred. The majority of the elves within the borders of the Argland Council States were refugees fleeing the madness and tyranny of the Elf King, or elves fleeing slavery from other nations. The Baharuth Empire's lack of laws prohibiting such a practice, unlike Re-Estize had done at the hard work of the Golden Princess Renner. As such, their section of the Parliament seethed at his presence.

"Esteemed Dragon Councilors. Respected members of the Parliament. I come to all of you today to make . . ."

"Get on with it!"

"Spare us all your hollow flattery dog of the Bloody Emperor!"

The mesas above thundered with tail slaps from three of the five Dragon Lords. The elves quieted immediately.

"From fliers of our Empire have I received news of a newly arisen Martial Lord! Former master of the arena, the war troll Go Gin was bested in singular combat by a man we call The Scarlet Swordsman."

A fair number of those present nodded. The Grand Arena of the Empire was generally well enough known considering it had challengers on a fairly frequent basis. But Go Gin was exceptional. No one thought he would be dethroned easily and he had gone on a long spree of keeping his title. Granted, not everyone present knew exactly who Go Gin was, but they all did know what a war troll could be capable off. That one had fought in gladiatorial arena combat made all realize that this meant he had more martial skill than what was usually expected of a war troll.

War trolls in general where notoriously hard to fight against, much less kill if you were not in the know about all their racial abilities. They could heal and regenerate from wounds with absurd ease. Their hardened skin could deflect all but the most finely crafted weaponry. If your armaments were not enchanted, then they would be like swatting him with a wet scroll. Males and females alike were ponderously strong. Hiding was a chore due to their keen sense of smell. They could see in absolute darkness and possessed a certain level of resistance to magical assaults. War trolls were also unusually alert and mindful of their surroundings, so good luck getting the drop on one.

"So who is the new Martial Lord if Go Gin has been ousted? Does he merely go by his epithet?"

"According to his talks with Emperor Jircniv, his name is Draconis Brightblade. Though we of the Empire call him the Scarlet Swordsman and Martial Lord, he holds a title he calls, 'Knight Most Heavenly of Avalon."

Among the seated representatives from other nations, the Merman who sat patiently while awaiting his turn to speak to the Parliament, froze at the mention of Avalon.

 _Elder Tide Current Lywellen made mention of the people of the island of Avalon worrying over their elder leader Lord Brightblade. But is this the same land dweller? There's one way to find out._

He spoke up.

"What kind of man is this Draconis Brightblade? You made mention that he is called The Scarlet Swordsman. Does this mean that he dresses in crimson?"

His inquiry was met with nods of approval by several immediately around him in the Parliament. A physical description of notable individuals was always important.

"No. He does not garb himself in crimson. His epithet comes from his scarlet hair, like a blaze. He wielded bastard swords of adamantite and wore elaborate, but medium armor coat. The man however, is most noted for his eyes. The swirl with every color known to the world. Prismatic eyes."

Platinum Dragon Lord and his fellow dragons glanced back and forth at each other in concern. Eyes of unusual coloration or even worse, hetero-chromatic eyes were unmistakable signs of power. Prismatic eyes like a rainbow?! Unheard of!

 _Has another moment of these Players arriving occurred? Are these even stronger than those of the past like the Eight Greed Kings? We will have to tread cautiously. A Knight Most Heavenly could either be a sadistic joke and blasphemy of what is actually good. But if this one is truly upstanding . . ._

"Baharuth Emissary, what was this man's intention in coming to the Empire? Surely not to just test his mettle?"

Platinum Dragon Lord's interest in the matter drew stares from the masses. Rarely did he ever personally inquire as to the affairs of another nation. He did need to as the most powerful being on the continent to everyone's knowledge.

"The Scarlet Swordsman came from the south, with the express purpose of rallying aide to the Dragon Kingdom against the Beastmen."

The mention of his desire to aide the great granddaughter of Brightness Dragon Lord made many present wonder what his aim could be.

"He has witnesses to his besting Cerabrate the Fierce Flash in no more than three maneuvers, none of them Martial Arts. The man was reported to have intruded on negotiations for aide from The Scarlet Swordsman's forces and challenged him to a duel. Our own guardsmen and all four Imperial Knights witnessed him treating with dragons as well. One of which by our deans of the Magic Academy, was one of your offspring Pyre Flame Dragon Lord."

The Dragon Councilor lifted his head and stared at the man speaking with keen eyes. If this was true he would have to make a round of visits to his offspring. It was something they Dragon Kind did not generally do. After a certain age, dragons did not mingle with each other in a traditional sense of family. Being naturally fiercely independent, most territories even among upstanding dragons were not infringed upon by other dragons unless there was some kind of mentor-ship. Even then however, interaction was sparse at best. Perhaps was a good time to make a few visits.

Platinum Dragon Lord tapped the hard rock of his mesa with a single claw in thought.

 _Hmm . . . another powerful swordsman, though both of them wield twin adamantite swords? Could they have trained under the same teacher?_

"What other deeds has this Scarlet Swordsman accomplished?"

"We unfortunately have very little to go on other than reports and his word. His forces are more known from reports from our agents in the Dragon Kingdom than the man himself."

 _He has military power? And he's using it to help the Dragon Kingdom? Unlike Momon, he appears to not flaunt his abilities unless he has no real choice. However, that could easily be a ruse . . . if he really did defeat the Martial Lord in gladiatorial combat he could either be far more powerful, or barely stronger. There is just not enough information._

A member of the Parliament spoke up.

"What Adventurer's Rank is he?"

"He is not an adventurer at all. He and his homeland of Avalon according to his own words, have never heard of The Adventurer's Guilds or Workers."

A different kind of consternation erupted from the gathering.

The merman swallowed, his gills opened and shut rapidly.

 _That assures all of the information I know! The Elder Leader of Avalon and The Scarlet Swordsman are the very same Draconis Brightblade. The Queen of Knights and her higher ups did not know of the Adventurers or Workers either until we explained the concepts. They will be pleased to hear that I have learned exactly where their nation's Guardian was transported to. Yet he will have quite a long journey returning to his homeland._

"Never heard of either of them?"

"Do they rely on their own military like Roble does their Paladin Order?"

"Roble is different, they just don't acknowledge the Guild as much as the other nations, but never ever hearing of the Guild or Workers? Come now . . ."

Another member of Parliament, a Naga spoke up with his question.

"Doesss thissss Draconissss have sssspecial viewss of the Adventurer Guild?"

At this the man occupying the podium frowned and bit his lip. Integrity was important, but keeping the peace more so. Then again, the Scarlet Swordsman had given a reasonable argument for his views and admitted of his own volition that he knew there were exceptions.

"The Scarlet Swordsmen has a very negative view of the Adventurer's Guild."

At this admission, there was silence. The emissary of the Baharuth Empire knew he was on eggshells that were scattered around gryphon tails and dwarven landmines. Taking a deep breath, he continued.

"When the Emperor asked him why he had such negative views of the Adventuer's Guild, he brought up the conduct of The Fierce Flash. During the Scarlet Swordsman's negotiations with Queen Draudillon Oriculus of the Dragon Kingdom, he burst into their meeting with no permission. He did so also interrupting her meal time which she personally invited him. When asked why he would barge into a serious discussion concerning the Beastmen invasion, Cerabrate moved that he was conning her."

Several groups within the Parliament, of which a multitude of them had Mythril and Orichalcum rank adventurers in their number, frowned. Such conduct was not only rude, but reprehensible from a professional standpoint. Even as an Adamantite . . . no . . . because he was Adamantite ranked, he should have known better. Such lack of etiquette and decorum was practical professional suicide.

Just from that detail alone, many members of the Parliament shook their heads in disappointment. Such a shameful display would obviously damage reputations as a whole, much less against specific teams. One Dragon Knight member of the Parliament stood as he spoke.

"Emissary . . . was his whole team with him during this fiasco?"

"According to his personal account, yes, they were. However!" He emphasized in order to continue speaking uninterrupted. "He made specific note that two members of their team did not seem to support the decision of The Fierce Flash. One Marko Sealbrand and Deidre."

Nods of understanding went around many heads of the Parliament. Especially from those belonging to adventurer teams.

"Cerabrate accused him of lying of his homeland, his abilities, and heritage with no evidence. Going so far as to requesting a man of the faith to divine his claims. When that was all refuted and rebuffed, Cerabrate of Crystal Tear threw the gauntlet at him. The Queen of the Dragon Kingdom was present for all of this."

The mention of the challenge of a duel via thrown gauntlet was a stunning blow for all adventurers present. The practice was old, since the days before the Six Great Gods even. The very action implied insults or grievances so dire that life or death would be the only recourse to settle the issue. Why would the leader of an Adamantite Team, the only one that they were all aware of, of the Dragon Kingdom do such a thing when they were being invaded and nearly on the brink?

"Though he did not provide all of the details pertaining to the duel, he did mention that Cerabrate yet lives by the graces of Lady Deidre of Crystal Tear beseeching mercy for the sake of the Kingdom and its fight against the invasion. He has his personal forces there fighting as we speak."

All in attendance either muttered darkly under their breaths or aloud with those sitting or reclining next to or nearby. That a man of unknown homeland would offer assistance to another kingdom in need spoke much of his inner character. That their had been no mention of monetary compensation was troubling though. A dwarven representative of the Parliament stood this time. His rough voice carried, but some had to strain to make out his gruff speech.

"What kind o' compensation did this Scarlet Swordsman demand of the Kingdom? Surely land o' some sort? Money fer 'is soldiers? The Queen herself perhaps?"

Some of those present bristled at the idea of a Dragon Lord's great-granddaughter giving herself up to save her kingdom, but to some it seemed a legitimate cost.

"That they treat those that surrender with humane mercy and not counter invade the Beastmen Kingdoms. Other than that, nothing."

Each and every one of the Parliamentary members gawked. Pyre Flame Dragon Lord and Platinum Dragon Lord shared a look. The crowds began to talk.

"Ludicrous . . ."

"What kind of madness is that?"

"Nothing? Nothing at all? Not a single copper?"

"Mercy to their invaders? When they've gone and eaten her subjects?"

Platinum Dragon Lord frowned and thought heavily on this development.

First, he had detected that vampire and her evil aura. Then his remotely controlled armor from his days assisting the Thirteen Heroes was pierced by that vampire's insane looking lance. Nevermind the armor that she had adorned. Then this Adventuer, Momon the Dark Hero slew her? Now this Draconis Brightblade appears in the Dragon Kingdom and begins to assist young Draudillon in her hour of need? Perhaps it was time to learn more about YGGDRASIL items and the other treasures in the Eight Greed Kings's vaults. Probably get in touch with Rigrit as well.

"Emissary of the Baharuth Empire, you are free to step down from the podium for the time being to allow us to receive our final spokesman for the day. We have a Merman of the oceanic tribes surrounding the west coast waters of the Holy Roble Kingdom."

The merman representative proceeded up towards the podium. He grew a bit uneasy at the number of eyes watching him. Especially five Dragon Lords.

Arriving at the speaker's podium. He swallowed.

"I am here today to shed light upon the events recent off the coast of the Roble Kingdom. More than a week ago, an island bearing a crystal tower that stretches to the heavens materialized from nothing."

Not a single soul present could say anything.

"From that island and crystal tower a city also appeared. It's people are of mixed races and heritage much like all of you here in the Argland Council States. They are a queendom, ruled by a woman they name, The Queen of Knights. They have made no offensive actions and act only in the interest of adjusting to their new environment. They had been friendly in all interactions with the merfolk there and we are working well to ensure that their massive city and our waters remain peaceful and coexistent."

A whole new nation? Out of nothingness just off the coast of the Roble Kingdom? A nation of demi-humans? The merman representative continued when no one asked anything.

"They possess military and magic power in our opinion that out strips the Holy Roble Kingdom by leagues. They possess pegasi riders and gryphon knights. Mages and other casters are formally trained at a magical institution and the commanders of their forces are both praised as heroes by their commonfolk."

A few of the gathered people had managed to regain their senses enough and the closest human woman to the podium let her voice be known.

"What is this island Queendom called merfolk spokesman?"

He looked directly at the representative of the Baharuth Empire. The man began to pale as he realized what was about to be said. The man swallowed harshly as all the claims of the Scarlet Swordsman were about to be validated by a most unlikely source from clear across the continent.

"Avalon."

* * *

 **OK, so a few extra notes for everyone reading before I get any further.**

 **Pyre Flame Dragon Lord is a native OC of the NW. Why? Because the other three Dragon Lords of the Dragon Council of Argland are WEB NOVEL only. As I have stated to reviewers and PM'ers alike. I do not consider the WN to be canon. It is Maruyama's "Rough Draft"/"Idea Springboard" so to speak. LOTS and LOTS of changes occur between WN to LN.**

 **I did mention through Lucia Ignis Thundercry that her stalker was a child of a Dragon Council member, so . . . tadaaah! Here he is.**

 **No Character Profile this chapter. Mainly due to many NPCs not quite fully fleshed out enough to warrant their "Character Page" just yet.**

 **Muhahaha! And here comes a nation that it seems everyone is anticipating for the LN's. The Argland Council State. Enjoy.**

* * *

 **Reviewer Responses**

* * *

 **Awayuki:** I'm glad you liked Hazuki in that chapter. She is a celestial fox . . . a tenko. While she has spiritual powers and spirit magic as a racial bonus, she is not an Omyodo. Glade you're enjoying the story. :P

 **Solarblaster:** The power level difference in the fights is hard to write without it becoming just a, "ONE PAAAAAWWWWWNCH!" moment . . . So yeah. The power levels of the opposition WILL make them and the surrounding denizens of the NW, rethink some things though. It's in the works. Zesshi WILL be making someone look foolish . . .

 **MadDan90:** Indeed. My parents dog wraps her front paws around my arm whenever I stop petting her when we're both on the couch when I visit my family. Pet attack ensues.

On another note, I talk about the length of the chapter then nearly go and write another one that's nearly just as long . . . :P

 **UndeadLord22:** A little time skip via another nation in this chapter, but don't fret, the discord between Bloody Emperor and Knight Most Heavenly WILL be in the next chapter from Draconis's POV. XD

 **Ilireanwri:** To answer your question . . . probably? Maybe? This chapter foreshadowing? Muuhahahaha . . .

 **Omegadramon2:** To answer your question. You get invaded by demi-humans that ate your friends and family and now you're being guarded by them? Hrrmmmm . . . To answer it better. He may have had them in the past, but he doesn't just give stuff out like Ainz seems to do ever chance he freaking gets. He believes that earning it is better than just having it given to you. It's an easy way out that he can handle in a different manner. Plus, yeah, demi-humans guarding humans that were being ravaged by demi-humans? He doesn't see that as a very wise decision.

 **RyuujiVantek:** I understand your concerns. They will be addressed when we get back with Draconis! XD

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** I basically played Go Gin no different from his appearance in the LN. I actually rather liked Go Gin's characterization.

 **PervySageChuck:** The Bunny sees . . . The Bunny conquers . . .

 **Dimension Distorter:** Ziang Lu Quan will get plenty of screen time I can assure you. The Bunny is a High Druid . . . Nature magic is pretty normal for it. Glad you're liking the story. Look forward to hearing more from you.


	20. Chapter 18: Cracks in a Kingdom I

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. It looks like we won't be getting anymore Overlord Light Novels for a while, at least 2019 for Volume 14. Though with certain developments in Volume 13, I'm wondering if that's a good thing. He's obviously getting worn out writing. Maybe the break will get us better content in Volume 14, but I'm skeptical.

* * *

 **Chapter 18: The Cracks in a Kingdom**

* * *

"Avalon? Is that where the Baharuth Empire said that the Scarlet Swordsman hailed from?"

"They're off of the coast of the Roble Kingdom? How is he so far away and none of the other nations realized it?"

The merman representative did not have the answers to those questions. Honestly, he doubted many people could answer them.

"Representative of the Merfolk, what can you tell us concerning this Avalon that . . . I do believe the emissary from Baharuth mentioned the Scarlet Swordsman hails from."

A multitude of nods traveled across the gathered assembly. The merman nodded and cleared his throat as he drew forth a magical crystal. The gathering of the Parliament perked at the object.

The crystal glowed and from it, a projection burst forth. Those gathered gasped as the image of the island appeared. The Crystal Tower surrounded by the Alabaster Castle and its surrounding city stunned the witnesses gathered. The city surrounded the castle. The castle itself wrapped itself around the Crystal Tower and as it rose, it melded into the tower itself. Alabaster white met their eyes with a royal like blue adorning banners and rooftop tiling.

The city and likewise, its walls were in an octagon shape. Farther inwards were the castle walls proper which were also octagon in shape. The overall size and scope of the city just from what they could see was unlike anything any of them would have imagined.

How did they get such a view of the city? They wondered.

A wing flapped into view and the view shifted giving them their answer in the process. Who ever was using the magical crystal to view the city turned to show the back of a young woman. She was wearing light armor, but anyone with enough experience could tell that it was no iron or steel in make. It's quality was superb as well. The Dragon Lords perked as did many of the Parliament members with smithing experience. She was wearing mythril armor.

"Sorry Sea Friend, but on our Queen's orders, I cannot fly you any closer. This will have to do."

Her voice was buffeted by the wind a bit, but everyone could hear her voice well enough. She sounded young. A whinny made the crystal move again and those watching held their breaths as pegasus, white as snow appeared beside them. Hooves magically gripped the air, allowing the winged steed to propel itself as if on land. The wings flapped occasionally and held firm to glide with the current.

Sitting in the saddle was a woman of honey amber hair and beautiful looks. Her mount drew murmurs as it wore barding that they all thought would surely weigh down her mount too much, yet it seemed to not be burdened or taxed by such armor. The young female guide of whoever was holding the crystal called out to the new arrival.

"Lady Claire! Did you need something?"

"Yes actually. Lady Gareth is calling for a meeting within the bell. I need you to bring the aerial view of Avalon to a close and be ready to report."

"Yes ma'am."

The woman nodded and peeled off, her mount angling away with broad and beauteous wings outstretched like a bird on the wind. As she drew away, four other riders in a V-Formation followed the woman in such sync that it made a number of the Parliament bite their lips in concern. Aerial military forces? Though the Baharuth Empire had Gryphon Knights as an elite guard, it seemed like this nation's air force was a formal military and not just an elite group.

The view descended towards the water level. The walls drew closer as they approached the sea level at a floating outpost that had both humans, demi-humans and merfolk waving up towards them. The whinny of the young woman's winged steed as they landed and whoever held the crystal dismounted told them that he too had been riding for a brief moment, on the back of a pegasus.

"I hope you enjoyed the aerial show of the city view. I have to go report in." The young woman waved at them and took flight again. Several merfolk began asking things pertaining to the feeling of being in the air. The Crystal's projection faded as the magic ended.

The representative from Baharuth swallowed hard. This was the nation the Scarlet Swordsman hailed from? It was no small wonder that he had outright rejected Jircniv's offer of prestige as an Imperial Knight. The could tell that city of this Avalon was superior to Arwintar, and they were the most advanced city to the known continent. Pegasi that flew and they gave permission to record? Or did the rider just not realize it? Even so, allowing such a thing was a bold move. Either they had defenses that could not be seen, or they were truly that powerful to just casually allow someone not of their nation to view their home from the air.

Likewise, the representative from Re-Estize paled a bit. What news was a single adamantite team compared to that of an entire city nation like what was just shown? Did the Scarlet Swordsman in helping the Dragon Kingdom really hail from such a city?

 _A Knight Most Heavenly . . . A man with a title from a place like that must be extraordinary. A Holy Knight of exceeding power?_

Platinum Dragon Lord and Pyre Flame Dragon Lord looked to their peers in concern. Blue Sky Dragon Lord also glanced around to his peers with questions in his mind. The hazy violet scales of the fourth member of the Dragon Lord Council glinted in the sun light for a moment. A deep, yet feminine voice resounded in the air.

"This Crystal Tower and the city surrounding it. How are they interacting with the Holy Roble Kingdom?"

Her question snapped many present back to their discussions. The merman answered the question after clearing his throat. He had not expected to receive a direct question from any of the Dragon Lords.

"The Holy Queen Calca Bessarez approached them herself."

That piece of information raised eyebrows. The Holy Queen herself? Not one of the Twin Wings instead? Not some random diplomat?

"The Queen of Avalon along with a handful of her retainers met with the Holy Queen. However, they returned shortly afterward. I am told that they rejected the offer of aide and opening relations."

"On what grounds? Were you informed of that information?"

The question came from an adventurer team from Argland.

"I am told that due to the division between the Northern Kingdom and the Southern Kingdom, and their prejudices against demi-humans made Avalon's queen skeptical and doubtful to the benefits compared to the possible backlash. Avalon is a city comprised of demi-humans if you remember what I informed you all of not long ago."

The Parliament nodded. The Dragon Lords fell back into deep thought as they contemplated what this meant.

The whole of the assembly fell into deliberations. These developments on so many differing fronts was a bit mind jarring to say the least. Should they hunker down and see how these prominent groups played out on the world stage? Would it be wiser to reach out to make certain that certain elements did not grow out of hand?

The elvish section of the Parliament began to think about reaching out to at least Avalon. Another organized city nation of demi-humans had promise as another haven for those elven brothers and sisters trying to flee the tyranny of the Elf King and the oppression of the Slane Theocracy.

The dwarven contingent could not remove from their mind's eyes the quality of the armor the young lass upon the pegasus and the barding of the pegasus they saw. It was beyond anything normal armies had. They could tell that it had levels of enchantment. Magic arms and armor on a military scale? What was their secret? Would they share with allies? Even just a sliver of that knowledge could be invaluable.

The centuars and their cousins all made differing conjectures about all the various bits of information provided. From the Dark Hero Momon and his partner, Beautiful Princess Nabe, to Avalon and their erstwhile Knight Most Heavenly Draconis Brightblade and their mysterious Queen.

The Dragon Knights among the assembly pondered as their superior Dragon Lords did.

Pyre Flame Dragon Lord grunted and thumped his tail a single, mighty time before speaking.

"I propose that we all take this time to adjourn before meeting again to take a vote on Argland's stance for developments around the nations of these persons of interest. I trust that my peers have no qualms to this?"

"I have none Pyre Flame Dragon Lord." Blue Sky Dragon Lord spoke as he nodded in agreement. His tail swished broadly to and fro, kicking up dust and dirt.

The others in their group also agreed and the group rose from their reclined positions. Platinum Dragon Lord addressed the assembly.

"Parliament is adjourned for the time being. Remain in the vicinity of the grounds and we shall all reconvene in two days time."

The masses began dispersing in various groups. The Dragon Lords remained atop their mesas until the entire assembly left the grounds. Once they were certain that all Parliament members had vacated, they began to talk among each other as The Dragon Council.

"So what are everyone's thoughts on these developments?"

Pyre Flame Dragon Lord closed his eyes in speculation before speaking.

"I personally am concerned about this Draconis Brightblade, but to be fair, that is due to one of my sons's apparent involvement with the man's assistance with the situation with the Dragon Kingdom. A warrior of sufficient skill can defeat a war troll despite the difficulty. I am very sure that this man probably has a magical artifact that allowed him to win. Perhaps, due to his connection to this kingdom, he is allowed certain treasures. My sons are rather treasure greedy, sad to say."

"You believe it was a bribe or a payment for an agreement?"

It wasn't terribly uncommon for other dragons to accept payments of treasures to ensure a deal. As dragons themselves they understood the feeling, however, they were also in positions of leadership of a nation and thus stood as exceptions to the treasure bribing scenario. Pyre Flame Dragon Lord's words made sense. Blue Sky Dragon Lord spoke next.

"So should we consider then, Darkness a more potent development? Just two of them and they have accomplished so much in such little time."

The Dragon Councilor of violet scales spoke up as well, her voice was harmonious.

"Considering the feats achieved by Darkness and the lack of other key bits of information concerning Avalon and this misplaced Knight Most Heavenly of their Queendom, I would agree that Darkness is more potent on the surface."

She continued speaking before any of them could interject. "However, that very lack of information could end up revealing that they are a potential threat to the neighboring kingdoms. Two individuals of such power as adventurers compared against a city nation with an army that has fliers?"

They thought back to the images displayed by the crystal. The city was a fortress and its structures alluded to a bastion against massive assaults. The city interior even from the distance in the air was split into sectors cordoned for defense and swift deployment of troops. They had obviously seen many battles where they had to defend themselves. If the claims were true and they had many demi-human citizens, then it made sense if they had come under attack by prejudiced forces.

"Seeing as this Momon of Darkness operates within the kingdom of Re-Estize, should we not keep a closer eye on them instead? The other two are obviously going to be more occupied with the Holy Roble Kingdom and the Dragon Kingdom."

The group of Dragon Lords nodded in unified agreement. That made much sense. The movements of this Draconis Brightblade were so far away that anything that he did would take time to both reach them and affect them in any way. The Holy Roble Kingdom's views of demi-humans would have Avalon's hands tied.

"I shall send a delegation to this queendom in order to learn more of them. Perhaps that may shed some illumination on their power and situation better."

Platinum Dragon Lord spoke with some level of concern.

"Truly Platinum Dragon Lord? I did not think you prone to helping other kingdoms unless it was a matter of international emergency. Even then you did nothing when the Silent City fell."

"I was not in any position to provide such assistance against that threat."

"Enough speculation and debate, all of you. It grows late and we should disband for a while."

The final Dragon Lord of the Council spoke with a measure of irritation. This one was unlike any of them and even Platinum Dragon Lord had to give him respect. His eyes were bright crimson and his colossal form was even larger than Platinum Dragon Lord. If the two of them were to be side by side, Platinum Dragon Lord would only be three-fourths his size. A massive form with dark black scales and crimson edged wings of incredible size. He possessed an impressive array of horns on his crown that splayed like flames consuming a willow tree in the wind. His tail alone was sixty feet long.

However, Platinum Dragon Lord's respect did not stem from his peer's incredible physic, but the intelligence he wielded. Despite his appearance, he was rarely seen outside of official or emergency gatherings. Preferring to keep to his unknown lair and send emissaries and champions to deliver his messages and missions. The manner in which he commanded his subordinates was one of a mastermind and a cunning, ruthless strategist.

Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord.

The dragon took wing, his massive appendages created a downburst so harsh that the entire area of his mesa disappeared into a cloud of dust and debris. When the sudden dragon generated squall disappeared, the massive Dragon Lord was no where to be seen at all.

"Tch! Show off. He wields Tier III magic like a plaything." Pyre Flame Dragon Lord scoffed mildly at the dramatic flair in taking flight and casting [ _Invisibility_ ].

"Even so, he is the strongest of all of us when it comes to the Tier Magic. He can cast Tier VI spells with ease."

With grudging nods of agreement, the rest of them disbanded, each taking wing to return to their respective beddings for the next few days. Platinum Dragon Lord began to think of who he would commission to send to the island of Avalon.

* * *

 **Southern Holy Roble Kingdom**

* * *

The people of the Southern Kingdom's port city could only gape in horror at the scene before them.

The ship that approached from the Northern Kingdom had been reduced to wreckage. Screaming sailors and their adventurer escorts littered the waters as they roiled. The only vessel that had left their port to try and assist them was torn asunder by the same means. An extraordinarily long and sinewy body of pale and dark blue hues splashed with scarlet and violet fins and scales breached the waters.

A violent, spiraling waterspout hundreds of feet high shot forth from the watery abyss. The few men and women in the waters screamed as they were sucked up into the watery tornado. Their cries literally drowned out the moment they were engulfed. The waters continued to churn and declare their fury up the waterspout before beginning to form a massive sphere of ocean water that rippled and pulsated with power.

As the people of the city quaked in fear and terror, the spherical orb grew in size as more waterspouts revealed themselves from the sea. They surrounded the sphere in the sky on all sides. The sky darkened and lightning crackled in the air. Within the darkening waters leading up to the sphere, they could all make out the sinewy, serpentine figure as a dark shadow. From the sphere's interior, a pair of glowing crimson eyes pierced the dark depths of the sphere and all who witnessed it paled.

The sphere exploded in a massive burst, the waters erupting from the sphere rained down on the sea and the city. It was as if a thunderstorm dropped upon them. The serpentine body of the creature twisted and from its maul it roared mightily, its cry felt like a death knell to them all. The creature was easily more than a hundred meters long.

Leviathan Oceanis dove back into the briny depths. Its darkened body in the water made its way back to the open seas, in the direction leading to the haze of the north.

Later that day, the remaining wreckage and bodies of the dead washed ashore. Families wept for lost loved ones and cursed the watery creature. Among the wreckage a single scroll container, water proofed and buoyant, was brought to the head of the city. Its contents spurred outrage.

It was the letter sent by Calca Bessarez concerning talks to better the Kingdom as a whole. Those in charge in the city who learned of this from whispering servants, and gossip mongers in taverns took the attack of the deep sea serpent to be a sign from the Four Great Gods. Specifically the Great God of Water, that the time of the Holy Queen was coming to and end. Or that Calca Bessarez had done something to earn the ire of the heavens.

News of this event would spread like wildfire across the whole of the Southern Kingdom. Eventually reaching Caspond, who upon hearing the tale, grit his teeth and made to speed his way north, though he knew that it would take quite some time to reach his younger sister.

* * *

 **Several Days Later . . .**

* * *

Pavel Baraja, Black of the Nine Colors of Roble, rode on horseback accompanied by a small contingent of soldiers from the Great Wall to Rimun. It had been days since they had received Governor Delacroix's missive and needless to say, he was concerned by its contents. When he had reported in to the superiors at the Wall to bring the matter to their attention they had surprised him with instant approval.

When he had asked why such a sudden, unquestioned decision, he had been informed that a number of Paladins of the Order were being summoned directly to Rimun by order of White herself. That bit of information, along with the contents of the missive made him even more concerned. After making a brief selection of troops to accompany him, he had departed.

Today though, they met up with a platoon of Paladins that rode from the capital of the Northern Kingdom. As they continued onward to Rimun, he noticed that a disturbing number of Paladins were joining them. The Paladin Order was 500 in number with the majority of them able to take on a Difficulty 20 monster. However, the ultra-elites, rumored to number around 25 or so, were able to fight a Difficulty 60 monster in single combat and win.

Among their growing number, he estimated around 80 of them had joined their traveling band of soldier and warriors. Just what was going on here?

As they approached Rimun proper, they all began to mutter among each other at the sight of the Crystal Tower in the distance and the island city at its base. With his sharp sense of sight and the clear skies, he could easily make out flying formations. Unconsciously gripping his reigns tighter, he felt a pit open in his stomach.

 _So it isn't a play on words in the missive sent to me. There really is a Crystal Tower with an aerial guard. It's a queendom of demi-humans that co-exist with their human population? I wonder about that . . ._

As they arrived at the main gates to the port city and began to file through, they could see that a number of Paladin and other Northern Kingdom soldiers were already present within the city walls.

"What is all this?"

As he walked about the city and slowly, but surely made his way to the Delacroix estate, the halted sound of a pair of footsteps came up shot behind him. Turning, he was stunned.

"Neia . . . ? Dear?" He was stunned to see both his daughter and wife. His wife was a former Paladin of the Order who was forced into retirement due to her wounds fighting a demon. She was slightly shorter than he was, but only barely. She smiled at his shock in seeing her before nudging their daughter.

"H-hello Father."

It had been more than three months since the three of them had been together, yet now this . . . whatever it was had drawn them back together. His wife's light brown locks did little to conceal a scarred right eye and its opaque color, one of the wounds she had suffered in her battle against the demon. Her left arm was a stump from the elbow down from where it had torn her shield and arm literally from her in its final moments. She stood with pride despite her appearance. A necklace that dangled from her neck told any who saw her that she had served as a Paladin and as such she had most people's respect. A harsh, strict woman, but not without compassion. Just very stickler for professionalism.

"It's so good to see you daughter dearest!" He brightened, the only thing that could truly change his expression was his daughter and his wife. He walked up to them to give them a hug, but Neia stepped back just out of reach.

"Father, I'm on duty."

He stopped short and sighed even as he shook his head in mild disappointment at being snubbed a family moment. Yet he knew where she was coming from even if he could not fathom why she'd want to become a Paladin like her mother,. Not that he would ever admit that in front of his wife. She had so much talent that did not lie in the sword arts.

"Very well. Though it surprises me more to see you my dear."

His wife smirked as she nodded firmly.

"I could say the same to you my dear husband. I was pulled from our home when the call to rally the Order from a new demi-human threat on our western shore. Though I may not wield a sword on the field, I will still be here providing rear guard support for our people."

He nodded as he began to piece together what was sent to him by Governor Delacroix in concerns to this Queen of Knights.

"What are you doing here though Pavel?"

"I was requested personally by the Governor of Rimun himself."

Both his daughter and wife perked at that information. They were here on the rallying summons of White. But Pavel was not a Paladin. He was a ranger of the Northern Kingdom's army and one of the Nine Colors. Did the governor of the city have some other reason for calling one of the Colors independent of White's order? Had they not coordinated?

Regardless, it seemed like the Crystal Tower in the distance was the cause for all of these gatherings.

"How many of the regular army is here?" It was a valid question for Neia. She was now a squire, something that he still could not get his mind wrapped around. She looked a bit out of place in her tabard with the dark cloak and boots. Her fierce eyes, like his own, were focused on the Crystal Tower in the distance.

He knew that she was thinking about this whole situation as well, but unlike his wife and himself, she did not have the experiences to be able to appropriately assess the situations. Then again, she had been working hard to become a Paladin . . . perhaps all her work paid off in some way that he did not know of.

As they all filed into the main area that had been reserved for all of the men and women gathering together, he caught sight of an adventurer team giving them all rather heated looks. He could see their plates and they were an Orichalcum team. The group shook their heads and walked away towards the Guild building.

Inside the Governor's Manor, Albert and Alicia Delacroix shook their heads in anger and frustration. The news of the ship that they had sent the missive from Calca being sunk by a massive sea serpent with the ability to control water had made it back to them and sent Remedios into a fury of finger pointing and blame laying on Avalon. She had immediately rallied the Paladins in the immediate area and sent summons for more of their number in addition to a significant portion of the standard army.

Calca was firmly against such action as their was no proof whatsoever. In an odd step away from the normal, Kelart had taken measures against her elder sister, informing the local priesthood and clerics of the church to remain stationary and uninvolved with this mobilization of military power. When the various troops had begun to arrive in earnest, Albert genuinely worried about the retaliation that would come from Avalon's Queen of Knights. She did not strike him as one who would hide behind castle walls if it was uncalled for.

Calca sat at the table they had for her with a crestfallen expression on her face. Yes, it was a tragedy with the fate of the ship that they had sent off to the Southern Kingdom. There was not a single valid reason that she could muster in her mind that would justify this build up of arms and personnel against Artorias's nation. This truly was one of those times when Remedios would end up ruining something. This time however, Calca feared that things would be unrecoverable.

Kelart's orders to immobilize the church and its priesthood to try and mitigate the damage was telling enough for her. Speaking of the younger Custodios sister, she had tried several times to convince her elder sibling that this was a fool's errand and suicidal. Yet after the fifth argument and Remedios stubbornly refusing to budge on, "the damned threat that that demon dragon spawn whore queen posed." Was the last straw.

Pegasi were known for having very finicky criteria for accepting a rider, and they were also said to be equally specific in their herd grounds. They would not remain peacefully in an area of land filled with decay and despoiled corruption. Having so many pegasi riders alone was a telling sign to the younger sister that this land and its queen were either so powerful that peace was enforced, or pure enough that the lands and its city were ideal grounds for the magical beasts. Either way, Kelart wished to learn more of the island. Attacking it was the last method she would want to employ against a city with obvious magical capacity.

The whole situation was stressing her to no end. Kelart's intelligence network and reports from other sources told them that the sea serpent was outside of its usual migration season. Normally the naval captains adjusted their routes over the sea and water trade routes to avoid such an incident. Not that the normal everyday person would understand that. Now, the reason why its migration was out of sorts? That was anyone's guess. No one had a feasible answer.

* * *

 **Outside Military Gathering Grounds**

* * *

Remedios was feeling immensely proud of herself as she gazed out across the men and women of arms and the Paladins of the Order who arrived so swiftly at her call. She could not accept that some demon dragon's bastard child was telling the truth of her demi-humans co-existing with humans. This so called "queen" was probably making use of some kind of magic to force them to submit if they weren't using them for food. Or worse for the women.

She could not fathom why Kelart, her own sister, was against gathering their forces to quell this demi-human threat and their traitorous human allies before they moved against their western front. Calca's negative reaction also confounded her. Did she just worry for the Paladins and troops safety? That made sense. But what was that look of disapproval and fear? These were the minions of a demon dragon child. Evil was to be crushed underfoot by the Order. No matter what, their justice would show them that they needed to call off that abominable sea serpent or face the consequences.

The leader of the Paladin Order failed to notice the lone woman crouched behind a parapet of the roof, looking upon the gathered troops in despair for their sakes. The figure swiftly vanished and made her way back to the Adventurer's Guild of Rimun. She had done as she was ordered by her leader, and now she too was convinced that this was a fool's errand.

The woman deftly, silently, leaped from rooftop to rooftop until she arrived at her destination. Arriving on the veranda of the large, rice paper doors of the office, she knelt just outside the thin portal barrier one one knee.

"Alkaid-sama, I've completed the task you gave to me."

"Aritgatou Oitsu-san. How bad is it?"

Oitsu bowed her head lower. She was a part of the old group that Alkaid had adventured with and had been her retainer since childhood. Having spent literally over fifteen years attending Alkaid-sama, she knew that her charge had been to Avalon when she had returned late a few nights ago and swore to not have the adventurers of Rimun cross the island city nation. She had not however, expected such fierce reaffirmation of their traditional tales and legends until her curiosity made her ask her liege and friend what she had discovered.

The admission that it was the legendary Queen of Knights: Artorias Faye Pendragon and a handful of her Knights of the Round, had stunned her. She didn't believe her liege for a moment, but the sincere determination and shine in her eyes was something she had not seen in a while. The look of a woman who believed with her whole being that the tales were true. She had even presented a token gifted to her from the Queen of Knight's hands herself. A pennant of vibrant, royal, pendragon blue with gold and emblazoned with a dragon roaring to the skies. It matched the painted image scrolls of the old tales and history parchments down to the descriptions of the materials used.

The hue of blue made from no cloth, but metal itself that shimmered in light, yet flowed like the smoothest of silks. The gold in the tapestry was also woven precious metal. It weighed less than they had thought it would, but far more than a cloth of the same volume by any measure. Perhaps even more cementing of the claims was the war banner of Bakamatsu Genpei that was sent with her liege as well. An original banner . . . Oitsu and had never bowed so low in her life to her liege lady in apology for doubting her words.

It was supported by a Living Steel Wood frame. A wood so strong that steel bounced off no matter how sharp. Only and enchanted blade could possibly rend the wood asunder, and even if it did, the wood grew back together when the parts were placed next to each other. The crimson and silver banner was also woven of precious metals turned spindled thread. The Mon of the Kai clan lay at its center, with every other clan emblem emblazoned in a protective circle around the Kai Mon. The clan emblems were laid over a lotus petal of white and black gemstones that swirled like the tides. It was overwhelming to see, much less carry to place into a special storage lockbox Alkaid kept hidden within her office.

"Alkaid-sama. White has called more than sixty of the Paladin Order and nearly 20,000 soldiers of the Northern Kingdom's standard army. Also, I believe I caught a glimpse of Black among the soldiers to arrive, though I overheard him say that he was here at the behest of Governor Delacroix, not White."

Alkaid shook her head in regret and sighed heavily. She sat behind her desk and grit her teeth as she thought. More than a day ago, she had ruefully discovered her ancestral aunt's mischievous side. She had been made to play the Shukuhachi with a Koto accompaniment shortly after their discussion about instruments and music. Being rather out of practice, she had been a bit mortified when she had missed a note or two, but the ruler of Avalon hadn't cared and laughed and even danced! The young woman who had been called to play with her – she discovered – was actually a descendant of a group of their people who had remained in Avalon with Shin Yoshitsune Kai's blessings. To think that their culture had been preserved in a foreign nation!

"Queen Pendragon is a peace loving ruler, but make no mistake Oitsu, the tales of their military might shows all over her palace."

The woman nodded in acceptance of that news.

"Thank you again for the news. Please return to your post and I shall do what I can to ensure that the Adventurer's Guild remains independent of this incident."

Oitsu bowed and changed her outfit mid stride out of Alkaid's office. She had gone from shinobi of Bakamatsu Genpei's Tsukiyomi clan to the receptionist of the Rimun Branch of the Guild. Alkaid looked out to the Crystal Tower and sighed. She placed a crystalline pyramid on her desk and let the magic activate. An image of Artorias greeted her.

" _Alkaid. I did not think to hear from you so soon after your return to your duties. How may I help you?"_

"Your Majesty, I do not enjoy being a messenger of bad news, but I felt like you should be aware of some things." Alkaid's eyes hardened and her ancestral aunt picked up on her mood.

" _I see . . . I'm listening."_

"Remedios Custodios, the leader of the kingdom's Paladin Order has summoned a number of the order in addition to quite a number of the standard Northern Kingdom's army. According to my retainer, she overheard that Holy Queen Calca Bessarez tried to get a message to the Southern Kingdom's in an attempt to begin repairing relations as you advised her, but it was sunk by a sea monster we all call Leviathan Oceanis. The creature is beyond adventurers and the army as well as the Kingdom's navy. Remedios blames you and Avalon for the sea serpent despite knowledge that it is merely acting out of its usual migration season."

" _Leviathan you say?"_ Artorias was intrigued and she could be seen rubbing her chin in thought with her thumb and index finger. _"Is there an accurate description of it? Powers?"_

"Yes, it does. Azure and violet scales with crimson highlights and long whiskers with crimson eyes. It had engulfed itself in a sphere of water atop waterspouts before bursting forth, making the water become like a raining deluge."

" _I see. Yes . . . I see indeed."_ A small smile crossed her lips. _"Thank you very much for informing me of these developments. I believe we can do something in concerns to the Leviathan. I assume you will be keeping the Adventurer Teams out of this growing incident with this Remedios?"_

She nodded with a concerned frown.

"It is my intention."

" _I will take this into account and advise my knights and people to not hold this over the heads of the Holy Queen herself or the city of Rimun. However, if we cannot convince them to back off, then my people will defend themselves."_

Alkaid nodded in agreement. She did not know how much of Artorias's grace was due to her relation to the Queen of Knights, but she was grateful regardless.

"I understand. Thank you for your gracious consideration."

A soft smile answered her words.

"Not a problem dear Alkaid. Take care, I have a meeting to attend to."

Alkaid nodded in understanding before deactivating the magical crystal. Sighing in fatigue, she rested her elbows on the desk and rubbed her face with her hands. Burying her face in her hands after a moment, she let out a groan of frustration.

What a day.

* * *

 **Avalon**

 **-Artorias's Office-**

* * *

Evalyn had been present for the conversation between Artorias and Alkaid. She frowned as Artorias leaned back in her chair and took a deep breath. The queen held it in for a few moments before exhaling with a huff. The woman got up from her chair and began to pace in a circle around her desk. One of her sure signs of stress and annoyance.

"My queen?"

Not missing a step, Artorias began to rant.

"I knew this was going to happen at some point, but not this soon. I will admit, this Leviathan Oceanis is a definite concern, but blaming a creature indigenous to their own world's actions on us? That seems like quite the stretch. I need to talk with my Rounds. Can you call for them please?"

Evalyn nodded and swiftly left to call on the Knights of the Round. Artorias walked to railing of the veranda balcony which overlooked the sea. The city of Rimun in the distance seemed to darken a bit in her eyes. Changing her view to the city below, she could see various people going about there business. Her hand went to her ring finger and rubbed the wedding band there.

"Draconis . . . Help those you are assisting and come home. I miss you so much."

Cavall, sensing his mistresses distress, padded over to her and laid down on her left before wrapping his massive tail around her in comfort. Artorias absently scratched behind his ears in thanks and he whined in mild concern in response.

The first of her Rounds to arrive was Gareth. Not that she was surprised by this. Gareth always was quickest on responding to summons if she was present and nearby. The Sky Valkyrie immediately took notice of her mood and went to her side. Placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, the taller knight of the queen gave her a reassuring squeeze. Artorias nodded in thanks as Mordred and Lancelot entered in short order. They thanked Evalyn before allowing her to go for the time being.

"Artorias? What's wrong?"

Mordred walked over in concern. He knew the signs of stressed troubles. Lancelot followed with his own face marred in concern. The doors closed and the group left alone to talk to each other. Artorias slumped to the ground and rested against Cavall's flank.

"The leader of the Paladin Order has rallied a number of her order and a number of the Northern Roble Kingdom's standard army. They number around 20,060."

Lancelot bristled as did Mordred.

"That doesn't sound like preparation for war at all . . ." Mordred spat dripping with sarcasm.

Garthe looked at her two friends with an admonishing gaze as she spoke. A hand went to her hip in a fist as she pointed at each of them like little boys caught fighting.

"We don't even know why yet. Can we at least figure that out before drawing steel?"

Mordred sighed and nodded while Lancelot rolled his eyes even as he agreed with her. There was no arguing with Gareth when she went into her lecturing older sister routine. Artorias shook her head at their antics before explaining what she knew.

She started with Alkaid's information about Leviathan and then continued with the facts that they had learned from their meeting with Calca and Governor Delacroix. The group traded opinions of the facts and possible decisions that this leader of the Paladin Order, Remedios Custodios could come to. They also did the same with the younger sister that they had learned about via Alkaid, Kelart Custodios.

By the end of their deliberations, Evalyn was among them with drinks of other small refreshments, fresh fruits and a small platter of cheeses with crackers. Most of it was consumed, with the small group left with just non-alcoholic beverages. Evalyn sat beside Cavall, rubbing his ears as he began to nap. She was paying close attention to their conversation and what she heard disturbed her.

"So we all agree that this Remedios Custodios is likely acting on pure blind prejudice and emotion?"

A round of nods answered Artorias's question. Mordred was particularly vigorous in his nod. The man had been in the Judge Advocate General, or JAG during the Arcology War and seen a plethora of mental war causes in addition to war crime trials and other incidents where the accused was innocent of their charges and acquitted, or tragically condemned. The blind justice belief was nothing new to him and Remedios fit the profile all too well. What he didn't understand was how such a person had been elected the leader of an order of Paladins. If it was via pure ability to fight against evil, then that was a horribly flawed system. He would not judge the actions of all due to the actions of one unless the whole was in unconditional agreement with the one responsible, yet he felt that there were exceptions scattered about the Roble Kingdom.

He had been jokingly called "JJX Mordred" by the guild due to his unique rare classes: Arbiter and Carnifex. Judge, Jury, and Executioner Mordred. Dark Knight or Fell Knight Mordred. The Arbiter and commander of the Judges of Avalon, he also commanded the Executioners of Avalon. Both were respected in the Queendom. The judges were thoroughly screened and as unbiased as possible. They did not serve life terms, but rotated every year.

The Executioners on the other hand were the wet works teams of Avalon and had worked very closely with the Queendom's Spy Master network lead by another one of their player members. All of them had two requirements: First, have the Fell Knight/Dark Knight class. Second, have enough resolve to raise their blades against even Artorias if she stepped off the path of true and good leadership for the people of Avalon.

Artorias herself agreed to the creation of the Executioners under one condition. That they all extend that judgment to their own members as well. This prevented rogue Fell Knights from abusing their own power and mindful of their peers for fear of facing the very judgment they wielded. A single Fell Knight or even a group of them could very well come under the same condemnation as those that they rose up against if others of their order disagreed and thought them taking it too far. It was a surprisingly effective, if not brutal check and balance system. They were just as friendly and genial as other knights of Avalon, but if you knowingly broke the law and caused harm to your fellow citizens, woe be unto you if you were not truly repentant and had a Judge pursue you or worse if you were an Enemy of the State and were condemned and had an Executioner pursuing you.

The Judges of Avalon under Mordred also served as national studiers of the foreign laws as well, ensuring that Avalon also understood the laws and customs of other nations as well. One would have been quite surprised how many battles and misunderstandings had been avoided or smoothed over by diplomatic and judiciary battles instead of ones of drawn steel. A Judge was nothing to sneeze at either, for many could also fight viciously not just with words and ink, but with magic or steel. Their "Law" system was bone chilling if you violated their terms and conditions during a fight. Few people played them due to their being restricted to the very same laws they set forth, but Mordred had seen the class as a challenge and relished in it.

"I do not believe this Remedios to be someone who really thinks things through. For one, they don't know our military strength outside our fliers. Perhaps twenty thousand is a lot for a nation in this world?"

Lancelot shook his head as he answered Mordred's question.

"If that is the case then even Draconis's private homunculus forces would be more than enough to decimate such a number if only due to the difference in power here. Remember the report he sent us concerning the power levels here?"

They did and shuddered. Level 30 was something akin to near unbeatable, legendary even to these people according to the report Draconis had sent them. At least for most humans of this New World. Something about the difficulty rating that the Adventurer Guild made use of was telling in comparison to their own levels of power. Not that they thought it completely accurate. Still, if the standing army of Avalon, or their PoPs forces were all considered more or less "Hero Level", then facing their army in open combat would not even be a battle. Just a one sided massacre if the opposed forces were only humans.

Deploying the whole army was out of the question. Hells, even a third of the army was overkill against human soldiers and the average mook. The group groaned and shook their heads as they wondered how to respond to this.

Leviathan Oceanis was a literal larger threat to Avalon than all the soldiers and paladins of the Roble Kingdom assembled off the neighboring shoreside put together.

"Let us focus on Leviathan first. As a sea based creature, fighting it will prove to be a challenge, but not unsurmountable. It's clear that it will only cause us problems in relations to the Roble Kingdom even should Calca Bessarez not be a part of this military build up in Rimun." They all nodded at Gareth's words. "I would suggest that Lancelot, Artorias, Claire, Lucretia, myself, and one other head out to handle Leviathan, and Mordred will remain here to command a contingent of our forces to deal with the forces from Roble if they make a move."

Mordred nodded as he spoke his opinion.

"I do not see a reason to object to this arrangement, but who shall be your final slot?"

Gareth thought about that for a moment. Honestly she did not have a good idea of who to fill their last slot, but it seemed like Evalyn did. The fey woman bowed to her as she spoke.

"Lady Gareth. I suggest taking Cathari."

The group looked to her surprised. Chathari was an NPC created by Ser Agravain as a part of Avalon's Spy Master network, which he had been in charge of. Unlike many of them, he was a quirky one, and Cathari was his Second-in-Command. The woman was given the epithet of "The Invisible Howl" for her abilities. Mordred was keenly aware of her abilities as he had made use of her as a sweeper for the Executioners at one time. Even though she was a Dark Knight, her levels were more structured after the Fall of the Valkyrie patch. Even though they were a swords and sorcery guild, some facets of their IRL managed to stay with them, especially when that patch had released.

Carthari was an interesting choice, but they were not sure if she was the best pick for this excursion.

"Might I ask why you would suggest The Invisible Howl? Her modus operandi is covert and clandestine operations, not outright combat."

Evalyn nodded at Mordred's concern.

"She has some of the best eyes in the kingdom though. Lady Carthari would be invaluable to prevent or counter ambushes."

The group glanced between each other in silent deliberation. No, they couldn't risk Cathari when her abilities tanked harshly when it dealt with a foe who could submerge. They all knew this quite well. All of them could not remember the number of times diving into water, no matter how polluted, had saved their lives from incoming fire. Cathari was an excellent Seeker, but not for this impending battle.

"The suggestion has many merits Lady Evalyn, but for this battle on the horizon, she may find herself rather lacking. Do we have any other possible candidates?"

Evalyn nodded in acceptance. She was not offended by the refusal of her suggestion. They knew the issues of this upcoming encounter and were merely thinking of the most effective people to bring with them. Thinking for a moment, she ran her mind through the others who could assist the Queen.

"Perhaps Lady Maribelle of the Church of Bahamut?"

The group of knights and their queen looked at her with a bit of surprise at the suggestion. Lady Maribelle was another one of Bedivere's NPCs. She was a peer and compatriot to Cecilia Von Houten. A healer and magic caster of the same school, yet different teachers in magic.

"That would work. What do you think Artorias?"

The queen crossed an arm over her chest and cradled her chin in her opposite hand. She nodded firmly and looked to Evalyn.

"Please send a messenger to call her to my office. Thank you for the help Evalyn."

The fey woman nodded and bowed before excusing herself from the knights and her liege. All of them began to plan out the rest of the contingencies. Hopefully, they would not need to draw steel and mythril. Mordred grit his teeth, he wasn't keeping his hopes up for this one.

* * *

 **I've got a double Character Profile in the next chapter. On to the reader review responses!**

* * *

 **Awayuki:** Yes, I am glad to see readers like yourself enjoy other characters I've introduced. Thanks for dropping in yet again!

 **MadDan90:** I figured that another nation eventually made its way into the interactions.

 **SolarBlaster:** Here we go! Yeah, Remedios will be facing fallout from her actions.

 **R.E.W.4:** Thanks for the review! To answer your question, the answer is YES. I already have his true form all ready to go. He just needs a feasible reason to bring it to the front lines due to its EXTRAORDINARY power. I know it seems like it's taking a long time to reveal, but it will be worth it when I get to it.

 **RyuujiVantek:** More on the way! Lol.

 **DimensionDisorder:** You're welcome.

 **Lew89:** That will be a fun moment. Thanks for dropping by!

 **PervySageChuck:** I was thinking more like Optimus Prime voice.

 **Guest Reviewer 1:** Things will change a bit with Ainz after I write the Lizardman Arc. Yet most of this so far, aka, Season I. Happens in an Overlord Canonical 2 WEEKS.

 **Omegadramon2:** There probably are. Yet Draconis and the others aren't as much a horder of old items like Ainz is. At the same time, he doesn't use them if he has them due to his other plans, aka using them as sudden reinforcements, or other such uses.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Hajime Saito and Souji Seta and the Shinsengumi are from the anime romantic-action/comedy Rurouni Kenshin. Hajime Saito and Souji Seta are actual historical individuals and they are romanticized frequently in other media outlets.

 **Ilireanwri:** I hope you enjoy their interactions! Thank you for showing up!

 **loki98065:** 10 chapters a week? LOL. Yes there is a build up and goal, yet groundwork always takes the longest.

 **OverWarlord:** Thanks. I dunno? A mix of like and dislike concerning a number of the Holy Roble Kingdom characters?

 **Guest Reviewer 2:** Thank you for your review and thoughts! I look forward to seeing you again in future reviews.


	21. Chapter 19: Dual Missions

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. 200 reviews? Neat! Thanks to everyone dropping a line. Thanks to all of you reading in general.

I apologize for the time taken to update and post this chapter. I have recently started a new position and work and so am adjusting to the new training and change in work locations. So writing has been a little difficult this past few weeks. Thanks for all of your patience!

* * *

 **Chapter 19: Dual Missions**

* * *

Artorias stood before her chest of arms at the far end of her office. The massive piece of furniture was magically sealed to only open for her unique signature. The doors lay open, revealing a seemingly small selection for its size. At least from an outsider's point of view. In reality, she was mentally rifling through her immense collection of arms and armor. When she and Lancelot had gone to collect their things from the Royal Armory, they had transferred their select pieces to their personal chest of arms in their quarters and offices.

She switched one of her weapons. The holy sword by her side gifted by the Lady would stay with her no matter what. It was too good of a weapon to not make use of. Her off-hand was debatable dependent on the scenario. She selected her second sword with care, her eyes comparing the pros and cons before nodding confidently in her final decision.

The [ _Skyward Mirrorblade of Rending_ ] was a standard length double edged blade made from Living Blue Soul and level 85 Elder Lightning Elemental clusters. An abnormal weapon, the blade glowed with a faint, pulsing azure aura that trickled bits of electricity up and down its length. The blade was jagged and zigzagged like a bolt of its elemental affinity.

Behind her, Evalyn nodded with approval as her mistress sheathed the blade in its magical container. The sheath warped and adhered to the blade like a second skin. Melting away when the hilt was grasped with the intent to draw. The queen's armor sparkled and disappeared before re materializing into a beautiful, aqueous form.

The armor was a flowing, form fitting armor that looked like the flowing scales of dragons of blue, yet they shifted colors to violet and sea green dependent on the angle in which they were beheld. The embellishments were like water currents and sea foam as the surcoat tails billowed like water cascading down a waterfall. A small circlet of gold with a sapphire adorned her head and her white and gold cloak materialized around her shoulders as well.

"The Roiling Armor of the Seas. A wise choice my Queen."

Artorias nodded as she double check her adjustments. It had a strong resistance to water based damage, but that wasn't its biggest asset. It was the ability to allow the wearer to breath under water and swim unimpeded in armor. The worst case scenario of anyone wearing armor was to get dragged into a watery grave.

Retrieving a blue emerald ring, she was pleased when a knock at her door met their ears.

"Enter."

The doors opened and a woman dressed in the vestments of the Church of Bahamut entered in. White and silver adorned her clothing and her outer robes were more like a long coat and dress slacks tucked into heeled boots that were equally white. Her soft chocolate brown hair was styled into a braided bun with bangs covering her left eye. She held her healers staff in her hands as she bowed to Evalyn and Artorias.

"Your Majesty, I, Maribelle of the Church of Bahamut have arrived in response to your summons. How may I be of service?"

Her voice was very well articulated and precise. She was of a noble house like Cecilia, but had gone to the church as her calling in life. She helped those in need of advice and wisdom. Her knowledge and patience served her well as a Maiden of Bahamut. Well versed in magic as well, she was more a healer than her peer, Cecilia von Houten, but still could double as an offensive mage if dire enough.

"It is good of you to come. My thanks for answering my call for your presence." Artorias spoke with a soft smile.

Maribelle giggled a bit before smiling in return.

"Oh, not at all my Queen. You and yours have always been good to us at the Church. We have never feared for persecution by any of your knights or their families. Though we pay tribute to the First Sire's son Bahamut, and by extension, the First Sire himself, we believe that others should be able to worship whatever powers that be so long as it does not bring strife and conflict to our neighbors. How could we not answer your call should you feel the need?"

"You have my thanks for your presence today regardless Maribelle. Have you been informed of why it is I asked for your presence this day?"

Maribelle nodded firmly, her countenance became solemn and business like.

"Indeed Your Majesty. The sea serpent which has caused conflicting issues between Avalon and our new neighbors of the Holy Roble Kingdom. You mean to either drive it away or ensure that it does not cause problems in the future, yes?"

Artorias sighed and nodded, but set her own jaw firm.

"As loathe as I may be to admit it, we might not be afforded the luxury of simply driving it away. We may need to slay the creature outright." At the Maiden of Bahamut's crestfallen expression at such an admission, she continued on. "If there is a way to drive it off, then we shall do so, but I fear that a reprisal from it may come at a most inopportune time if not permanently handled. It has already caused the Holy Queen of Roble issues that have lead to a gross misunderstanding resulting in the build up of an armed force set against us."

Maribelle's expression traversed the gamut of saddened at the prospect of killing the creature, to concern, then to appalled at the mention of armed forces being set against Avalon over a misjudged tragedy. As opposed as she could be to killing, she would not hesitate to defend Avalon and anyone else in need when they were innocent of wronging their assailants.

"I see. That is unfortunate, but I understand the reasons. I shall accompany you and your group. May I ask who will be joining us?"

"Ser Lancelot, Lady Gareth and Claire, Dean Lucretia, myself, and you. Ser Mordred will be keeping hearth and home ready should the forces gathered upon the shores take actions in our absence."

Maribelle swallowed nervously. Such a line up was remarkable and she was honored to be counted among them. When Artorias offered something to her, she started slightly, having zoned out a bit.

"M-my apologies! I was taken off guard with who would be undertaking this mission. I am honored."

She looked at the ring in Artorias's hand curiously.

"Take this and wear it during the entirety of this undertaking Maribelle of House Lyndwyrm. It will help greatly with this encounter."

As she took the ring with a shallow bow and placed it on her finger, the others arrived at the doors. Lancelot Du Lac wore his sterling armor of Starlight Gold, not a prismatic ore, but still powerful and rare. A level 90 ore that one could only obtain by farming Star Elementals during one of the Christmas Events. It provided Light and Dark Elemental resistances and provided a few other neat perks. The cloak he usually wore was replaced with a deep ocean blue and gold half cape that draped over his left shoulder pauldron. He was not wearing his World Champion gear. He did not feel the need to with this particular mission. Only if the chips were down would he don his World Champion regalia in this New World.

Gareth wore her mid-weight armor with her winged cloak of flying should she ever be unseated. The loose wings folded comfortably on her back. One of her usual rings was replaced with a similar one to the ring gifted to Maribelle by Artorias. The woman also had gifted her subordinate, Claire with one as well.

Lucretia's manner of dress and garb had not changed in the slightest. Her magic would do as would her gear. The Dean of the Magic Academy was ready as she always was for a good adventure, seeing as her background was one from a foreign land before finding Avalon and settling down.

Mordred was here was well, but mainly had joined them in order to properly send them off before assuming his post as a guardian commander of Avalon.

"You will want to discuss any concerns with fighting this Leviathan with the merfolk we have made allies with. Being water dwellers, it would make sense that they should know something more about this creature than those on land do."

The group nodded and began to file out, when Mordred stopped Artorias with a hand on her shoulder. She looked up to her friend curiously.

"Yes Mordred?" There was a small frown on his face.

"Rules of engagement should they make a move?"

Her eyes hardened at the old question from their days during the war. During the war, they were rarely followed due to the brutality and total war nature of the conflicts. No one had bothered keeping to the RoEs about half way through the second year of the war. By the end of the third year, there had only been one Rule of Engagement: Survive.

This was NOT that war.

"Talk first. Engage only if engaged first. Make use of what your Judges have learned. Protect the people first and foremost. Defend yourself as you would me. If they do something so wrong that it demands blood . . . make them bleed. Do try to keep fatalities to a minimum though Mordred. Make use of Cavall if you need to."

Mordred nodded as Cavall rose from his bedding and padded over to the Dark Knight of Avalon. The Hoarhound bumped his head into Mordred's shoulder. The huge winter wolf nodded as he acknowledged his mistress's order. The man scratched the guardian pet of Artorias behind the ears, earning pleased panting before vigorous shaking out of his pelt.

"Understood my Queen. Avalon will not fall while you are gone. Good hunting."

Artorias nodded once and departed to catch up with the others.

* * *

 **Rimun**

 **-Delacroix's Office-**

* * *

Pavel Baraja frowned openly as he stood before Governor Albert Delacroix. The man sat at his desk with heavy expression. To his side, stood Alicia Delacroix. Both of them gave him deathly serious looks of their own.

"What do you mean by this governor?"

Albert was not quailed by the stern expression of Black. In truth he half expected this kind of reaction.

"You did not mishear my words Black. Queen Calca does not wish to antagonize this Queendom off the coast. Her Majesty has expressed the desire to step out of her cocoon and begin to lead the people of both our Northern and Southern halves in earnest. However, the actions of White are running directly counter to that goal of our Holy Queen."

Pavel frowned deeper if that was even possible.

"What of the rumors that we hear whispered among the gathered paladins? That this Queen of the Crystal Tower is the spawn of a demon dragon and rules over her people with fear?"

Albert slammed a fist down on his desk, rattling everything on it. Even in his stint with the standing military of Roble he had not been so foolishly blind!

"Tell me Pavel Baraja, and tell me true . . . . do you really think that White is capable of reason? Calca Bessarez merely described the Queen of Avalon's physical appearance and Remedios immediately brands her a 'demon dragon spawn'?! If that was all that was needed to label things, then your own color should decry you evil!"

Pavel had enough grace and sense to not comment on that. Albert pressed on.

"Assuming that Remedios was actually correct in this and we all agreed upon this action, do you really think that a force this size would truly take such a grand walled city with such a massive structure at its very heart? We have no air forces to speak of. I am sure that they are well aware of the risks of archers and mages as well given they admitted to having a dedicated Mage's Academy! An institution like that of the Baharuth Empire. They have already made allies of the merfolk, do you really think that they would allow her to lead armed forces by ship to that island? You'd lose who knows how many just to the roiling waves!"

Pavel sighed heavily. This is not what he had expected when summoned by the governor. From all his time at the Wall, the man could not help but be skeptical. A woman with dragon blood leading a city-state of demi-humans that lived peacefully with humans? Was she from the Argland Council States?

"I will verify that information with my own eyes governor."

"At what cost? One cannot simply wave off a military incursion and simply wave it off like a poorly brewed cup of tea Pavel Baraja. Heavens forfend if any of you harms one of there number that is a civilian. Then what? Any retribution they would hash out against you would be justified!"

Pavel sighed heavily. This was getting no where and the man was adamant. Now what? It was obvious that the governor was greatly concerned with the possible retribution that could come from this move, but organized demi-humans were even more a threat than disorganized mass rushes. He personally merely wished to see the truth of the matter before finally coming to a conclusive decision. Yet it sounded like the governor was certain that waiting for such a thing was a surefire death sentence.

"Governor, I believe that you are overreacting in this regard. Queen Bessarez may have been impressed enough by this place's delegation, but they came in the night yes? That shows that there is something they do not wish the everyday person to witness. Such subterfuge for a first meeting is sketchy."

Delacroix scoffed at the man's reasoning.

"Oh, and so I suppose that it would be better to have their Queen, who is of dragon blood, paraded around the town to come under scorn and possible attack for her appearance when her political savvy during the meeting would make veteran politicians and nobles green with envy. I tell you this now Pavel Baraja, the ruler of that island nation is beyond us. Her eyes alone feel like they see right through you. Her contingent also gave off the same piercing presence. These are not the rabble that you faced at the Wall, mark my words."

Black shook his head sadly. This was definitely not a good start to this whole situation. He had not expected the retired soldier turned governor to cow so easily to some random nation that only consisted of a single city. Regardless of it's massive size compared the Rimun, it was still only a single refuge.

As he walked out of the room, Albert groaned in frustration and irritation. His wife squeezed his shoulder in support. This was not going to end well. Perhaps it was time to get in contact with Alkaid at the Adventurer's Guild and prepare for the fallout.

In her loaned office, Calca stared out the window toward the Crystal Tower and found herself thinking of what she could do to counteract this foolhardy decision by Remedios. Kelart had already begun to take measures to prevent certain reprisals against those she had any sway over. That was mainly the churches. The issues that would inevitably arise from this were her concern. Several pieces of parchment on the desk had a series of missives inked upon their faces that were not for delivery, but to help her better organize her own troubled thoughts.

Even though she could probably stop a fair portion of the troops from participating in this fool's errand with her words alone, many more would still follow Remedios given how she was playing up Queen Artorias's heritage as some grossly mistaken demon dragon spawn. Granted, she had no clue about the dreadful implications of someone having dragon's blood in any measure. It was unheard of other than Queen Draudillon and her parent via Brightness Dragon Lord. She feared that if Artorias knew Wild Magic it would be all of their ends.

She could already feel many individuals in both the standard standing army and even a handful of the Paladin Order who did not wish to fight a battle against the forces of someone with a dragon heritage. Dragons were creatures that humans could not beat unless you had someone of the legends like the Eight Greed Kings or the Four Great Gods. There was no telling what powers or gifts that the Queen of Knights could bring to bear.

Nevermind that she had humans as part of her inner circle. What kind of skill and power did they possess to hold positions of power when their certainly had to be demi-humans of superior natural abilities among their populous? In particular the ones named Gareth and Mordred seemed to be especially unique as the others save the Queen of Knights herself had been beneath them in their apparent hierarchy.

A knock at the door drew her attention and she acknowledged the visitor. Kelart entered with a heavy expression. The younger Custodios sister walked over and took a seat opposite from Calca and muttered darkly under her breath. Not understanding her friend, she tilted her head to the side a bit.

"Kelart? Is something troubling you?"

"I just finished speaking with the church branch here in Rimun to not participate in my elder sister's current blind venture. I had several high ranking priests and clerics attempt to assist me in divining a few things about that Queen of Knights you met."

Calca nodded as she followed along with Kelart's words. However, judging from the younger woman's expression, the outcome was unfavorable.

"We came up completely blank. None of our attempts so much as offered a glimmer of knowledge. Two of the younger, but more promising members helping in the attempt were struck dumb. They are in recovery chambers, but the sheer amount of magical backlash from whatever they encountered has rendered them comatose. I've never seen such magical defenses."

They had used the ritual Tier VI spell [ _Scry_ ] and received precisely nothing. No images, sounds, or anything regarding this Queen of Knights. Kelart knew her way around her magic, and the only ways to counter that extremely powerful spell were either the mythic magics that could ward someone against it, or to have such a strong force of willpower that they resisted it of their own mental fortitude. She was direly hopeful that it was magic and not this Queen's willpower alone that stopped their attempt.

"I see. With the manner of armor and finery that the Queen of Avalon and her retinue were regaled in when they made their visit, I cannot say that I am terribly surprised by such a development."

Both women sighed heavily. They had both tried to convince Remedios to give up this escapade, but the elder sister would hear nothing of it. So utterly convinced that they were right and on the side of justice was she that in other situations one might have found her conviction admirable, yet this was not one of those times. Kelart could feel it in the air, this was one opponent they did not want to face.

* * *

 **Avalon**

 **-Waterfront Docks-**

* * *

The docks were only recently completed, having never been near a source of water so large as to require them. Created by a combination of earth and stone shaping spells from druid class NPCs and further built upon by the craftsmen with the help of their new merfolk allies, it was a mark of pride for both parties.

Both merfolk and Avalonian citizen alike bowed as Artorias and her group walked by. Lywellen bowed as he greeted the Queen and her party.

"I was informed via a messenger that you would be coming to speak with us. How can we assist you?"

Artorias nodded once and decided to get straight to the point.

"Sea Friend Lywellen, I assume you have heard of Leviathian Oceanis. We seek to find and drive it off, or otherwise prevent it from causing further issues between Avalon and Roble if possible. Is there anything you and yours would be willing or able to share?"

Many of the sea natives frowned or shuddered at the thought of Leviathan. Lywellen knew of Leviathan Oceanis and it was a mighty, unassailable creature they called Lord of the Tides. They wanted to face it? Just from what they had seen and how they had interacted with the people of Avalon, he knew they were strong, but this was fool hardy. Yet to refuse the Queen herself could possibly cause horrible damage to their friendly relations.

"Your Majesty. I can, but Leviathan Oceanis is a Lord of the Tides and is not to be underestimated."

"I am not Sea Friend Lywellen, it is why I am not sending my military, but those you see with me right now along with my own person. I will not risk the men and women under my authority without proper naval combat training."

Those that were all gathered around paled a bit.

"Just your group? I must beg you reconsider Your Majesty! Leviathan Oceanis is many, many meters long and supremely powerful. All other forms of predatory sea life give way to it."

She nodded in understanding of his words but he could see that the steel resolve in her eyes did not waver in the slightest. Nor did the same forged, unified front that those with her. They were set and determined. Observing this, he twisted his hands together in nervous paranoia.

"I see that you are determined and set in this course. Very well. Please follow me. I cannot speak of Leviathan properly without one of the other elders present."

Lywellen made to dive off the pier, but stopped before looking back at them. Nearly all of them were in armor. As if reading his thoughts, Artorias spoke.

"You need not worry about us following you with difficulty. We have made preparations in regards to underwater movement."

Nodding once with a bit of unease, he dove into the waters. The entire group followed and people on both sides of the alliance looked to one another in concern.

 _They really did make such preparations. They are not as agile in the waters as we merfolk, but the fact that they are keeping up in heavy human armors and cloaks says much. What warriors of caliber!_

Lywellen was impressed. Whatever they had done, they were keeping pace with him even with him slowing a bit to let them follow behind. The fact that they were breathing underwater was also very telling. The Queen of Knights led the formation with the man they called The Knight of the Lake beside her on the right. The woman known to them as Gareth was on her left and the rest of them followed in protective ranks. Deeper and deeper they swam until the waters began to grow dark.

Murky blackened waters were only illuminated by Lywellen's natrual bioluminescence. Small nodes on his person and any other merfolk of his like glowed a pulsed in a light sea green aura. The group behind him merely played follow the leader. They rounded some kind of darkened structure to reveal a giant coral like civilization encased within a giant air bubble. The spherical shield was wrapped in certain places by coral that glowed with odd colors and seaweed.

A group of trident armed guards stopped Lywellen short, gesturing aggressively to the group behind him. Artorias and the others glanced at each other with patient expressions. They expected this kind of reaction and when any of them thought about it, they really could not blame them. They were all armed and armored and followed one of their own down without any illumination of their own to forewarn them of extra oncomers.

Lywellen was let through, but they guards immediately imposed themselves between them and the opening that formed in the bubble of the their home. Merely giving them a respectful nod of acknowledgement, they figured that Lywellen was being brought inside to build his case for the non-merfolk followers he had brought with him.

As they waited, they began speaking to each other via [ _Message_ ].

* * *

 **Coral City of Lumin**

* * *

Lywellen walked under guard to the Elder Council chambers. He had expected this sequence of events and had thought through his explanations and petition well in advance ever since he began interacting with the island of Avalon.

As he was brought before the council, he took a deep breath to help calm his nerves and walked in as his name was called with confidence. The Elder Council consisted of six members, all of which were the wisest in their trades within the city. Each of them eyed him sharply as he approached the center speaking dias. They completely surrounded him, so no one could hide anything behind their backs without being noticed. Not that he had anything of the sort.

The leader of the council, a paling merfolk male of crimson fins on his elbows and legs spoke up. His voice was still clear and sharp, not matching his age well at all. It threw many merfolk off balance when they heard him for the first time.

"Lywellen, you are here before us today according to the guardsmen because those land dwellers of this new island wish council with one of our elders?"

"I never thought I would see the day that an ignorant land dweller actively sought out a merfolk's opinion on something related to the seas! Hah! Perhaps they finally see that they pose no chance upon the open wrath of the tides?" Another elder spoke with condescension in her voice.

Two of the other members of the council chortled in amusement. However, two of the other members frowned and vibrated their gills in disapproving noises. One of those two spoke up in aggravation.

"I heavily doubt that. I have heard from the younglings and others who have interacted with the people of this new island. They are extremely advanced in their society. They have members of many races among their number. Not only that, but they took strides to ensure that they did not pollute the foul the waters surrounding them with their refuse and disposed garbage even before we met with them."

His fellow disapproving member nodded in agreement with that statement.

"Indeed my friend. When they did meet with some of our kind, not a single blade was pointed at them. Rather, they had expected such an event to occur and asked questions requesting information about their surrounding waters and what to expect, and how to interact without provoking territorial disputes. What manner of society does such a thing by being 'ignorant'? Nay, I should say that the denizens of this island are extraordinarily savvy in the ways of diplomacy. These are obviously of a very different cut of cloth as they themselves would put it."

The lead elder raised a webbed hand to silence the group. After they had calmed for the most part, the split of opinion still making itself known with body language rather than words, he spoke again.

"Lywellen, you and your school of our city have spent the most time interacting with these land dwellers. What is your take on them?"

Recalling everything he had experienced thus far during his time at the surface, he could honestly say he had felt quite accepted and treated very well. The people of Avalon were grateful for the assistance they had rendered and in return had shared information freely. Of course, there was a limit to just how much, but even he could understand the need for certain details to be kept secret. No one told someone all their tricks of the trade or secrets. Some things were just not meant to be shared.

At the same time, nothing had been forced upon them either.

"Council elders. In the time that I have spent with the people of Avalon on the surface, it has been nothing like the incidents between the Holy Roble Kingdom. They have shown gratitude in abundance and a culture as rich as the blessings that the reef provides us with. The leaders of the island city are wise, powerful, and shrewd, yet more humane than most humans we've encountered. I believe them to be a people that we would benefit immensely from by maintaining good relations."

The lead elder thought on Lywellen's words for a time before nodding firmly.

"Very well. We shall hear what this group has to say. Bring them forth."

Lywellen bowed deeply before taking his leave to gather the Queen of Knights and her retinue.

It did not take long to retrieve the group as they merely bobbed in the waters outside under watch of the guards. They had taken up various 'sitting' positions as they glanced back and forth at each other, seemingly in silent conversation. Artorias 'sat' with her legs crossed and her arms crossed over her chest as she nodded at Gareth. Said woman imitated a reclined position with her hands intertwined behind her head as she slowly spun in place. Lady Claire merely bobbed beside her liege with an embarrassed look on her face, receiving sympathetic pats on the shoulder by Lady Maribelle. Ser Lancelot 'sat' cross legged with an amused expression.

When Lywellen approached, they all 'stood' to face him. It was a very odd feeling. It seemed like they were at home regardless of the situation underwater. Motioning for them to follow him, they nodded as they swam toward the bubble dome's opening "gate". The guards eyed each of them as they passed by, but none of them seemed to mind.

As they proceeded through the coral merfolk city, those out and about either ducked out of sight or stared at the group following one of their own. Artorias led in the front behind Lywellen. Gareth and Claire followed behind her on either side as Maribelle and Lucretia lagged just behind them. Lancelot brought up the rear and maintained a watchful eye and ear.

"Humans? Here?"

"The one at the lead isn't human. What manner of heteromorphic is she?"

"Could they be from the island that formed from nothing?"

Such were the words and whispers that they could hear with their overtuned senses. Arriving at the council chamber, the guards posted there crossed their tridents across the entrance, thus barring them entry.

"No armaments are allowed past this point. You will all disarm here or be disallowed to continue past this point."

Lywellen made to object, but Artorias gestured to those with her and those with swords disarmed, relinquishing them to the other members of the merfolk guard who took them. One of the guard dropped the blade that Lancelot handed him. The sound of the weapon and its sheath and frog holder hitting the floor was deafening. The piercing half glare that the merfolk received chilled all present. Though they did not know that it was not his World Champion panoply, they all instinctively knew that a warrior prided themselves on their weapons.

This slip up would cost them dearly in the negotiations. Artorias had other plans. As the guards now uneasily approached her to relieve her of her swords, she lifted her chin in both indignation and slight defiance.

"One of yours has slighted my best and strongest knight and one of his choice arms. As recompense and balancing of the scales of negotiation, I shall keep my arms. I would not relinquish the signs of my station. Sacred treasures exceeding the symbolism of any crown or jewel. To ask such of me is akin to demanding your expectant to birth upon the shores."

The guards halted at her words. The saying of having their expectant to birth upon the shores was a damning, taboo phrase that implied that the children of a pregnant merfolk female would be doomed to land predators as they had not means of surviving out of water. It was too cruel a sentence. To make that comparison about a pair of blades was telling. They understood the symbols of station, but for a sword to outclass the crown?

A voice from within the chambers called out.

"Let them pass. She makes good points, and the slight we have made is a valid one."

The guards winced at the truth of their elder's words and stepped aside. Artorias nodded to them and then to her contingent before following Lywellen inside. The rest of her entourage followed closely behind, though none of them looked in the direction of the guards.

Entering into the chamber proper, the collection of Artorias and the others took in their surroundings, mentally making notes for forceful exit if it deteriorated to that point. Gareth and Lancelot could not help it. Their pasts making them very paranoid and cautious to such meetings. Past ambushes with countless soldiers and death honed that far too well into their minds.

From what they could observe, they did not sense an ambush prepared, but could see where armed guards could enter. Now though, their attention rested on the council members that sat on all sides. Lancelot could feel their surprise at Artorias, but his own personal instincts told him that councils that were effective were only those that held limited office status. Life long terms were horrible ideas, breeding nothing but festering corruption. While there were very rare exceptions, it was better to not hedge one's bets on such an individual at all. These merfolk seemed to hold their stations until they were deemed necessary to remove. That would be a problem.

"So you are the Queen of this island that has formed from nothing."

Artorias nodded respectfully to the merfolk speaking. She recognized his voice as the one from earlier.

"I am."

The merfolk scrutinized her for a few moments longer. Despite her stance, they could see no openings or weakness. Few beings could stand such silent observation from all sides, yet this scaled, horned, and tailed woman did. Her entourage stood at the ready, yet of them all the lone man at the back chilled them all. His eyes were focused as an archer's going for the kill. Though his eyes faced straight in front of him, they all felt like prey before the hunter in this man's presence. If this Queen was a solid rock, then this man was a furious storm encaged, waiting to be unleashed at but a word. There was only one word to describe what they felt at the moment.

Danger.

Danger at making further offenses. Danger at insulting this woman he apparently followed of his own volition. Danger at even trying to harm any of this party of land dwellers. Their instincts screamed to let them have whatever it was they had come for and get them out of their city.

As if reading their feelings, Artorias smirked.

"Ser Lancelot. Please excuse yourself from this meeting. You are setting them on edge."

"Your Majesty?"

"I have no doubt that should anything untoward occur, you would have little trouble rushing to our aide. Yet remember that Lady Gareth is also your peer. She will not allow anything to befall me."

Artorias spoke without once looking back to her knight. The man nodded once and bowed in acceptance.

"As you wish. Excuse me then."

He slowly backed out of the chamber, not once turning his back on his Queen. Once he was gone from the chamber, the council members began to relax. However as they did so, a different pressure replaced the one left by Lancelot's departure. This one radiated from Artorias herself.

"Do not believe that since my strongest knight has excused himself on my order that you may relax just yet. My knights do not accompany me just to protect me. They protect others _from_ me. My aura is repressed by other mighty auras overlapping mine own. Be thankful I did not dismiss Lady Gareth as well. Otherwise my aura would be even more unbearable."

She gazed directly at the lead elder of the council and her eyes made him stiffen. Glowing rims around her irises seemed to pierce his soul. Never had he witnessed such a thing.

Gareth mentally shook her head and sighed when she noticed the central elder stiffen. This was one of Artorias's class abilities. [ _Charisma of the Divine Ruler_ ]. One of the two capstone abilities Artorias had acquired when she maxed the Ruler Class with the Genius boost. Any diplomatic affairs that she handled in the name of her allegiance, in this case, Avalon itself and its people, she gained an aura that could influence those not of the same rank as her socially.

This was one of the reasons why the Judges had been created with the imperative to learn the laws and customs of foreign lands.

Gareth could not feel it at all because she held a position that Artorias personally held as her equal. Supreme Commander of Avalon's Air Forces. As much military as political, she was immune to the aura and as an equal in Artorias's eyes, could act as a buffer for those around them.

In other words, the more people around her that she personally considered a peer and equal, the less her [ _Charisma of the Divine Ruler_ ] affected others around her. They truly were not protecting her per se, but protecting those around her from her own power. It was why she kept her friends close whenever she went on official business with other Guilds or leaders in YGGDRASIL. It forced her to become effective in negotiations and other equivalent exchanges without resorting to power. Though when she did have to make use of it . . .

"What is it you have come here for?"

"We have come to learn more of Leviathan Oceanis that we may prevent it from repeating another misfortune that may cause further misunderstandings with our neighbors in the future. Already we are in a precarious position and its latest rampage has only made that position totter dangerously to war. I will not see my people go to war over a misunderstanding that has not been directly related to us. Not just for my own people – despite the priority I place of them over our misguided foe - but for the lives of our supposed foes as well. We are not the only ones with families."

The lead elder nodded at her words. He could clearly see that this woman had seen much and lead a people experienced in national upheavals. This was a ruler who did not merely talk, but actually _lead_. However, some on the council did not see it this way.

"Foolishness! What kind of ruler does that? If you speak of that Roble Holy Kingdom, they are little more than an eyesore that touts a twisted version of another nation's religion! They cannot defend themselves effectively without that wall they claim to possess. They are isolated yet desire to be a part of the human's international stage but do not send messengers asking aide. They blindly label all like us, _like you_ , a blight and would rather strike you down than listen."

Artorias kept her gaze directly on the lead elder as she responded, her voice filled with steel and her tone turned to one of cautious warning.

"You speak so ill of the Holy Roble Kingdom, yet there are a number who do not necessarily share that belief. You speak of their sins against demi-humans yet refuse to acknowledge that you are now doing the very same but in reverse. Even I am not immune to mistakes and prejudices, but I take great pains to ensure that make as few of them as possible, and when I do misstep, I take responsibility. Do not use this argument against me. I have heard it countless times over the many years I have ruled and it irks me like a thorn on the inside of a person's boots."

The elders of a more open minded persuasion nodded in agreement. One of them smirked openly at his peer for the sharp tongue lashing he just received at the hands of this Queen of Avalon. It seemed to all of them that she was no shrinking coral to aggressive politicking. She was growing on them despite the aura that seemed to push against them. One of the less bigoted members of the council spoke up.

"You speak truth Queen of the Island. We should better censor our opinions and words in official meetings. Despite our issues with the Roble Kingdom, you are not of them and should not be held in the same light. _Especially_ ," The elder glared at his peers across from him as he stressed his words, "when your people have shown nothing but friendship and concern for our mutual environment. Your people are to be commended. I for one am thankful for such considerate neighbors."

Her aura did not lessen, but he received a respectful nod of thanks. He returned the gesture before looking to the leader of their council.

"I believe we have grossly deviated from the undercurrents. I do believe that they required information about the Lord of the Tides?"

The elder leader hummed in thought as he closed his eyes. He did so to give himself relief from the glowing eyes of this heteromorph queen's piercing gaze, but in spite of his attempt, he could still feel her eyes upon him. Unwavering in their strength, and overflowing with both purpose and conviction, it was overwhelming! Her drive was not power hungry, it was not oppressive either. Yet her eyes drove through his being. Eyes that were set upon a purpose that could not be deterred. He could truly feel it. She was here for the sake of her people, not herself. Such passion and conviction in such clear, focused irises made him a bit ashamed to call himself a leader of elders by comparison.

"Indeed. While I have nothing against providing you with the information you seek, the risk you will be taking is your own. But you are obviously aware of that already."

He allowed himself a predatory smirk. Artorias merely nodded, though he did catch a glimpse of her lips tugging into a smirk of her own.

 _She obviously knows that taking a large force against such a beast is only asking for a whole sale slaughter of her forces. Thus she strikes out with only a small, yet obviously elite cadre of her forces. Though I am thoroughly impressed that she takes it upon herself to go as well._

Folding his hands together, he leaned forward.

"We shall call our archivist immediately to tell you about Leviathan Oceanis."

Artorias merely nodded with a minuscule smile crossing her lips. Yes, this was fulfilling, knowing you were dealing with someone who could think and make judgments without voicing needless personal opinions. She had a feeling that the merfolk of Lumin were of decently sound mindset, despite the few detractors.

Outside the council chambers, Lancelot Du Lac found himself taking in what he could see from the entrance. The guards gave him space as he looked about. Overall, he rather found himself enjoying the underwater view with the illuminating coral and aquatic life swimming about around the outer sphere barrier. Honestly he had wondered with their city had been fully submerged or existed in a bubble such as this one. The merfolk ability to walk on land despite the obvious discomfort many of them showed and the lack of running speed compared to even humans had made them all curious as to how their cities, if they even had any, were structured.

"Excuse me. Knight of the land."

He turned to see the merfolk that had dropped his sword earlier. Regarding him with a cool, but not spiteful gaze, he nodded slowly. Seeing that he was not being shunned or shouted at for his earlier error, he bowed slightly. It was an awkward thing, something done with no knowledge of how to properly address someone of a differing culture.

"I wish to apologize for my blunder before. I did not intend to insult you."

"The fact that you have mustered the courage to come to me in person and take responsibility for an honest mistake without making excuses says much for your character. Your name?"

"Mywellis."

"Mywellis," Lancelot tentatively sounded out. Nodding once, he continued. "I assume the sword's weight caught you unawares?"

Mywellis bashfully nodded in confirmation. When he had taken the sword from the knight, its weight was absolutely unheard of. He surely would have injured himself if he had tried to have scrambled to catch it. How did a man carry, much less wield such a weapon in combat? Never mind that, how did this knight even _swim_ here with it?

Lancelot chuckled in his mind. He had brought the weapon because he felt the weight would help its edge against an opponent that could very well be very sinewy and slick. Such a thing would prevent lighter blades from getting a solid cutting area.

The weapon was a Legendary Tier [ _Blade of the Graviton Titan_ ] that he had grinded for a month to acquire. An utlra dense, Starlight Damascus Steel hand and half sword that required a ludicrous strength score to wield two handed, much less in a single hand. It gained bonus damage against anything lower than it altitude wise on the battlefield.

On the opposite side of the coin though, if he hit you with the [ _Blade of the Graviton_ Titan] from below and he succeeded in a strength check against you, well . . . you were taking a temporary flight whether you liked it or not.

A strange, and definitely unorthodox ability.

Put simply, was he taller than his opponent? Yes? Then prepare to be on the receiving end of a monstrous bonus damage attack that possessed tons of defense piercing. It had no elemental affinity, so it remained effective against any enemy with elemental resistances. Its massive weight made it also count as not merely slashing, but bludgeoning damage as well. Due to its weight, it had bonuses to disarm attempts, sunder attempts, and bonuses against being disarmed or sundered in turn.

It's critical damage was ridiculous, yet its critical rate was non-existent, relying purely on the player's ability to know weak points to exploit on their opponents. The base damage was high, its mobility was lack luster due to the weight and incurred an abysmal penalty to those not strong enough to wield it single handed. He had rejoiced to no end when he had managed to accomplish that feat. Draconis had been there for that moment and had immediately made him swear to not use it against him.

" _Gods you're a freaking monster Lancelot. And I thought my Dragon Race was brutal, you're just insane! Please, please,_ please! _Don't hit me with that thing."_

Setting aside the fond memory for the moment, he refocused on Mywellis.

"That is understandable given that sword's properties. I imagine that there are not many who can wield it. In light of your character to come personally make things right, I find nothing to forgive you of. I do hope that our peoples can find more ways to co-exist with each other."

Mywellis had not expected such magnanimity from someone slighted in such a way. Yet it appeared that these people valued integrity and honesty despite the need for social etiquette. He nodded gratefully.

"Indeed ser knight. My thanks."

* * *

 **Avalon**

 **-Command Barracks, Inner Walls Section-**

* * *

Mordred stood with his hands resting upon the massive map desk in the center of the room. The Judges and Executioners that he had called to meet with him were also accompanied by officers of the main army as well. Members of the Gryphon and Pegasi flying branches were also present in the large meeting area. Each of them held serious countenances as Mordred traced the area of the island most likely to be landed on if the forces of the Holy Roble Kingdom made their way across the waters. He had already came up with an agreement with the merfolk to not interfere with the Holy Roble Kingdom if they traversed the waters. This was to remain an Avalonian and Roble affair, not drawing in the merfolk.

"Ser Mordred. If I may, how many of us should deploy with you?" A member of the regular army asked as Mordred acknowledged them.

"Given the numbers they have assembled and the differences in the powers of our nation and the people of this land as reported by Lord Draconis Brightblade, I'd say the commander of the First Judges section and Second Executioners section for my personal guard. I want those of the Gryphon and Pegasi corps to be on standby, but not overly visible."

The heads of those gathered around the meeting room nodded as they took in his words. The rest of them awaited his next words. Mordred tapped a section of the map. Drawing forth a set of military unit figures, he placed them around the area in a caving semi circular ring.

"Should they arrive here at this point to the east of the city, those at the extreme ends of the battle lines should remain under stealth spells until I give the word. You all will fully encircle their numbers after confirming that they have no stragglers either via [ _Invisibility_ ] or otherwise."

The officers of the main army of Avalon looked to the Round expectantly.

"I want the men and women of 11th Avalonian Brigade with me on this."

The officers of the 11th Brigade straightened and saluted. The rest of the officers nodded and a few nearby patted their peers on their back in both congratulations and encouragement.

"Those of the rest of the sections of Avalon's main army will be on standby at their respective posts around the city proper and the castle. Let no strangers wander within our walls or without. Do not harm those who do not harm our people or your own persons. Defend anyone of our city as you would our Queen. Should anyone surrender, treat them humanely."

The men and women present saluted before beginning to file out in order to carry out their orders. Mordred himself looked back to the map in concern. Hopefully the would not have to draw blades and cast spells. But from what he had read of the laws and customs a handful of his Judges had managed to collect from their Divinations it was unlikely.

He selected a piece of parchment from the pile on the desk and looked it over.

He silently read over the document.

"A person of one of the Nine Colors has authority that may exceed standard military law and command should the need arise. Example mainly is always in the case of demi-human threats. Such a thing is considered a holy quest, and has the blessings of the nobility."

Placing it back upon the desk, he took up another piece of parchment and read it over out loud to himself.

"Gross incompetence of duties even by those born or elected into their positions shall be punished based upon the level of severity of the offense. Such a sentence can vary from monetary compensation to one's life via servitude or even execution."

 _They have these laws yet no concrete foreign policies. No contingencies for foreign powers meeting with those in power being of differing views. No there are no policies in place for really any national interaction. How isolated have they made themselves? None of them have thought to have runners seek out assistance from other nations to their north or south? They have a navy, but nothing?_

Mordred sighed and shook his head in disbelief. Walking out of the command room, he was pleased to see military men and women of multiple races moving about with purpose as they carried out orders. A slight breeze told him someone had arrived behind him and he knew this feeling. Without turning around, he smiled.

"Greetings Cathari."

"I heard about the Queen's plans to handle the issues with Leviathan Oceanis. How shall I be of service? Should I take a number from the Roaring Cyclone Corps and infiltrate Roble? Should we spread out and contact other nations? It seems like we will not be able to remain isolated for much longer due to this Remedios Custodios's actions."

Mordred placed a hand to his chin in thought.

"Let us not be hasty. We shall see the results of these next few days before we come to that decision. I do not wish to make such a substantial decision before consulting with Gareth, Lancelot, and the Queen."

Cathari nodded before leaving just as swiftly. She was one of the few NPCs in the Guild that could actually get strikes by Draconis's defenses from extraordinary ranges by _their_ standards. It was one of the reasons why she garnered the moniker, "Invisible Howl".

He knew that Cathari and her subordinates would take up positions to cover those participating in this operation. He need not worry about sneak attacks with her on watch.

He just hoped that more sensible heads would prevail in this upcoming confrontation. Leaping to the top of the walls, he gazed out to the east. With the spy glass he held to his eye, he could see the ships being gathered by the Roble soldiers. He opened a [ _Message_ ].

" _Yes Ser Mordred?"_

"Forgive my presumption. I have a request."

" _I am listening Knight of the Round."_

"Can you petition the spirits of the waters to force the ships preparing to approach to land on our eastern shores?"

There was a short silence before she answered him.

" _I have spoken with them and they agree on the condition that they do no harm and are allowed to spend some time within the fountains around the city in leisure."_

"That is a bargain my Lady. Thank you for your generosity Lady of the Lake."

He received a chuckle before the spell came to a close. He sighed heavily as he stared to the east. This was going to be interesting and stressful in equal measure. He just hoped that he didn't take things too far.

* * *

 **Character Profile 15**

* * *

 **Cathari**

 **Humanoid**

 **Position:** Officer of the Roaring Cyclone Corps; Member of the Executioners of Avalon

 **Residence:** Avalon

 **Alignment:** Lawful Neutral (100 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** N/A Humanoid

 **Class Levels:** Ranger = 15 lvs.; Gunner = 15 lvs.; Sniper = 5 lvs.; Scout = 15 lvs.; Rogue = 10 lvs.; Spy Master = 10 lvs.; Shadow Master = 5 lvs.; Advanced Vanguard = 10 lvs.; Eagle Eye = 10 lvs.; Grassy Knoll = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 (Class Levels 100)

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 75

 **MP:** 50

 **Physical Attack:** 85

 **Physical Defense:** 50

 **Dexterity:** 85

 **Magical Attack:** 10

 **Magical Defense:** 40

 **Resistances:** 50

 **Special:** 85

* * *

 **Character Profile 16**

* * *

 **Lywellen**

 **Heteromorph**

 **Position:** Trade Leader of Lumin

 **Residence:** Lumin

 **Alignment:** Neutral Good (150 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Merfolk = ? lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Craftsman = ? lvs.; Master Craftsman = ? lvs.; Trade Leader = ? lvs.; etc.

 **Total Levels:**?

* * *

 **Reviewer Responses**

* * *

 **OverWarlord:** Huh. Drunk reading. Hope that didn't take you too long. XD

 **MadDan90:** Fair enough. I had to close that moment because leaving it open is not a good thing for my writing later on.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Good luck with your idea that you PM'ed me. Cookie for you if you can figure out where the Judges came from.

 **Awayuki:** That seems to be opinion of all readers about Remedios.

 **RyuujiVantek:** Leviathan is something I came up with so get ready to enjoy this encounter.

 **Loki98065:** Mordred will be heading up the defense. A few things may change. I have to write the Lizard Man Arc.

 **Dimension Disorder:** The Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord will be playing a significant role in the future. Look forward to it.

 **Peroroncino:** Here ya go.

 **Lets Write and Read:** Thank you. That's always a concern for any fan fic writer, unless they are doing it on purpose. Keeping canon characters more or less as they were in the official content can be challenging, especially with side characters with not a lot of background.

Thank you for dropping in and I hope you continue to read this work.

 **Ilireanwri:** Thank you and hopefully this satisfied you for the time being.

 **Thristan:** That can be debateable.

 **Yoloith:** Thank you for your honesty, though I find your dislike of military background character with a "sob" story a horrible thing rather off putting myself. Never once did I say he was a hero of the Arcology War, just a survivor. Traumas during war are horrible in the extreme. We are blessed at the moment that their isn't another World War, though that could change in a heartbeat. I have other opinions about the reason you dislike Draconis, but I feel like you didn't even read the later chapters to see where I went with it. I hope you find a fic you do like and enjoy it. I'll keep plugging away at mine.

 **NecroSerpent101:** You shall see. You shall see indeed.

 **R.E.W.4:** Yes, expect that.

 **Saliaskonstant:** Well now . . . I am flattered, but I know that I am not the best out there with fiction writing on this sight. I draw inspiration from some of my favorite authors, like Final Fantasy Tactics' Legacy of Honor, Fire Emblem's Hammer of Terrascars, and others.

As for support, well, funny I had conversations with a few other authors and fellow writers on the site. Fanfiction is just that. Fan Fiction. We are writing our stories based upon something that is already canon. We do not, and SHOULD NOT take monetary gains for working on something utilizing properties that are not ours. They are not licensed by us and are thus subject to copyright and all the legalities thereof.

Despite the differences and leniencies in Japan with Doujinshi and side content at anime-cons, there are absolute nightmares and legal battles all the time with content like this. It is why this site despises and in the terms and conditions points out that such actions are NOT approved. also hates this and has the lawsuit filing options for those that have licensed and copyrighted content that may NOT be infringed upon without written, legally binding documentation.

Japanese companies are notorious for scouring everything concerning these infringements.

Biggest example of this is one of my absolute favorite series of all time.

Macross. We will NEVER see an English dub of the series outside iffy fandubs that Harmony Gold will 100% hunt down.

Point of this rant? As honored and flattered as I am that you would want to provide me with such support. I CANNOT and WILL NOT accept such donations. Your reading and reviewing is more than enough for me as I make nothing from this and write this fic out of my own desire to put my thoughts of the world of Overlord in "ink" so to speak.

Thank you for your time and dropping in. XD I hope you continue to do so.

 **Solarblaster:** Everyone seems to enjoy seeing this for some reason . . . :P


	22. Chapter 20: Meeting of Armies

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is not mine but Kugane Maruyama's and is licensed by YenPress. Support the official release.

* * *

 **Chapter 20: Meeting of Armies**

* * *

"Well now. This is a thing."

Mordred watched as the vessels of Rimun load with soldiers and paladins from Roble via a magical spy glass. He stood upon the parapets of Pendragon castle. A Judge and Executioner nodded in agreement as they peered through their own spy glasses. Around the gates leading toward the eastern side of the city, the 11th Avalonian Brigade prepared to deploy. Mages from the Academy prepared spells and clerics and priests of the Church of Bahamut were praying over them as they passed by.

He sighed with a grim expression as he turned to walk back down the numerous stairs of the tower to return to the ground level. The clank of armored boots upon stone echoed throughout the stair wells as they descended. As they finally exited the tower's spiraling steps, the main courtyard opened up to them. All around were troops and knights, squires and castle staff running about as the military preparations were being finished as per his orders.

No salutes were given to him as he passed by. Active orders for the time being overrode traditional parade standards. No one saluted their superiors formally, the old "sniper check" rule being enforced in full at this time of military mobilization. One of the NPC Knight Commanders stuck out to him and Mordred approached, deviating from his primary path in doing so.

"Crozwell von Houten."

The man turned and nodded firmly a single time as he finished giving instructions to a squad of knights under his command. The group nodded and verbally acknowledged his orders with a holler before hustling away to carry it out. Mordred waited until he had the man's full attention.

"As you are part of the 11th Brigade, I have a request of you."

"Certainly Ser Mordred."

The Knight of Round motioned for him to fall into step and Crozwell did so without missing a beat. As the they walked, Mordred set about explaining his request.

"As you and your knights are carrying out the plan, I would like you to keep an additional eye out for any hidden troops they may try to sneak around the shores. I trust the men and women we have on over watch from the parapets and other sniper's nests, but let it not be said that boots on the ground did not make the best reporters in the fray at times."

"I see. Very well. We shall watch the blind spots made by the wall's shadows and the ridge lines of the island itself."

"Sharp man. Glad am I to have a sharp mind with our troops."

Mordred patted him on the shoulder before departing in a different direction to further direct the men and women of Avalon's forces. His armor glinted in the sunlight, with flowing crimson cloak that swayed as he walked. To his left, the Judge accompanying him wore the silvery sheen of Solarian True Steel full plate with a neutral gunmetal gray half cloak that predominately covered his left side. He carried a curved blade of broad face and keen edge. The helm that he wore fully covered his face and even hid his eyes. A Judge was to remain impartial both to those around him, and be unrecognizable to others around them in case those he or she was dealing with were friends or worse, relatives.

The Dark Knight to Mordred's right was garbed in Obsidianite armor of matte black, no sunlight seemed to glance of the metal surfaces of the armor she wore. It seemed as if the sunlight was being sucked into the very armor itself, never to be seen again. Upon her back was a cape/banner that displayed the symbol of Avalon, but in black against a dark velvety violet. It was held to her upper shoulder blade armor and the nape of her collar in the back at three points and flowed down to her knees. She carried a great sword that matched her own height yet kept pace with them without trouble.

As they exited the inner hexagonal walls to Avalon, the soldiers and knights of Avalon's 11th Brigade stood ready. Armor of brilliant white and silver adorned the members of the 11th Brigade. Each of the commanding knights of a section wore a feather plumed helm, the sky blue and gold feather clamped in place on the left temple location. The feather stretched a good two feet. All soldiers wore a pendragon blue half cloak over their left shoulder. A large majority of them carried longsword held to their belts by the quality leather frog and around half of them also carried a medium class shield that held little in the way of embellishments as they were strictly functional. They were mostly mythril to keep the weight down, but held an inner core of adamantine. Horribly weak compared to the shields at mere level 45, but still likely superior to everything Roble possessed.

Another large portion of them wore lighter, scale or chain mail of the same quality as their full plate comrades, but wielded bows of various sizes. A small number of these outfitted archers held an undeniably dangerous version: the Great Bow. Capable of double the range of a long bow and fired arrows nearly an inch and a half in diameter, most of those wielding these were centaurs or dragon blooded members of the army.

A smaller portion of the remaining members in the brigade were the mages and healers. They were dressed in the same long coats, leggings, knee high boots, and gloves as the rest of the army did underneath their armor. The coats were double breasted, with collars that were large enough to shield from the elements should they be upturned. They were also water proofed and as such rain was not absorbed by the material. They were made of a special material from Asgard's elven woods called [ _Sky Silk_ ]. It was a level 60 weaver's material that was lighter than air and allowed free air flow no matter where. Yet it was quite durable.

Every coat possessed split tails that began at the waist, where the front of the outer wear ended and trailed down to just above the knee. Underneath the coats, was a collared shirt or blouse for the men and women of the same make. The pants were of jet black dyed combination of the [ _Sky Silk_ ] on the inner layers against the skin and a far tougher fabric from level 35 mobs. The outer most layer was of soft, supple leather from Berserking Wilda-beasts. Their leathers pliable and rugged for the rigors of combat, yet soft enough to remain wearing for long stints of time.

The boots under greave plating or lighter metal armor inserts were fold out collar at the knee and of a similar leather, but permanently water proofed. Trench foot and other horrible foot afflictions from bad footwear, or even quality footwear in bogged battlefield drove all of the players of Avalon to agree to this kind of footwear for their troops. They had even gone so far as to create socks from Primordial Frost Lamb wool. The material granting a cooling effect, keeping feet and toes alike from sweltering in blazing temperatures, yet warm in the harshest of colds.

Mordred recalled all of these details with both pride, and a little bit of embarrassment.

 _I guess we really_ did _go a bit overboard in the PoPs and army creation. Well, we were all in the muck and hell of those battlefields enough to understand the pains of just_ living _in those conditions. Alright, enough looking back at the past for now!_

Bringing himself to his full height, he addressed the troops gathered. Many members of the clergy and groups of civilians nearby stopped to listen as well. It was little secret that those on the shores of the Holy Roble Kingdom were amassing a military force. It didn't take a genius to figure out against who either. Many of the families living closer to the outer walls had moved inward at the graces of Artorias and the Church alike.

"Proud and honorable men and women of Avalon! Today . . ."

* * *

 **Holy Roble Kingdom**

 **-Rimun Docks-**

* * *

" . . . we embark on a holy quest to ensure the safety of our people against the scourge of the demi-human threat that has _dared_ to make itself known to the people of Rimun and our western coast!"

Remedios stood on a large stack of shipping crates as she addressed the Paladin Order and standing army of Northern Roble. Many among their number nodded as she spoke, having not yet seen the one the nation recognized as White. She was a cutting, strong woman to see and she was the epitome of justice for the kingdom. More than a few younger members were a bit awestruck as she stood in the bright mid morning sun. Her white and blue tabard and silvery plate mail exuded everything that the Paladin Order stood for. A bastion and succor from evil and the bright, holy sword with which it would be smote to the ground.

"These demi-human ingrates dared to insult our Holy Queen in a hidden meeting and scoffed at her generosity to bend to her Holiness!"

Gasps went across the masses and nearly all began to grind their teeth in rage. Queen Calca had met with them? Few to none of those present were aware of such a thing occurring.

However, a small number among them, Pavel Naraja's wife surprisingly being one of them, frowned in confusion. Lifting her remaining hand to her chin in thought, her frown drew her daughter's attention. Neia Baraja had only just begun to reconnect with her mother after joining the Paladin Order as a squire. Seeing her mother with such a concerned face, she knew from her childhood that it was nothing good.

"Mother?"

"It doesn't make any sense. If they were lead by demi-humans and met with the Holy Queen and found her lacking in their eyes, why did they not strike out and kill her? Or take her hostage? That is not how any demi-human or demon I've seen or fought behaves. Something is off."

Neia tilted her head in a bit of confusing, her sharp eyes narrowing further at her mother's suspicions. Personally, she had not been particularly impressed with Calca Bessarez when she was inducted into the Order. Perhaps these denizens of this island city had felt the same?

"Maybe, they did not feel that such a thing was worth it?"

Her mother turned steely eyes to her daughter and Neia fought the urge to flinch, she was a paladin now. Squire perhaps, but still a part of the order.

She smiled and Neia found her self surprised at the response. Her mother leaned close and whispered softly into her ear. There was a steel tone to it that gave her warning to not mention anything of this conversation to others.

"I am beginning to think the same. Kelart Custodios has pulled all church support from this venture, no priests or clerics are among the number gathered. Be wary Neia, these island demi-humans may very well be wiser than anything seen. Have care when you land, trust those eyes given to you by your father."

Neia's eyes widened at both the admission and advice. Nodding firmly, she turned back her attention to the front. Remedios was continuing her speech/rant. By this time, several of the soldiers of the standing army and a number of paladins were cheering and letting loose rallying cries.

"We will show these demi-humans that we are not to be trifled with! No mercy for the . . ."

* * *

 **Avalon**

* * *

". . . soldiers who come from Roble shall receive mercy and humane treatment upon surrender. We are soldiers and knights! Not barbarians with blind blood lust! Should they demand your blood, defend yourselves as you would our Queen! There is no glory in indiscriminate slaughter, so mind your actions and mind your tempers. I have little doubt that such slander against you and your Queen shall be loosed upon you from their lips as arrows from the archer's fingers. Mind yourselves, show them that their beliefs of demi-humans and humans alike are flawed by a show of solidarity not cowed by the words of the few! We are Her Majesty's shields and swords! Your family's shields and swords!"

Silent nods of acknowledgment and agreement rifled through the ranks of the brigade. Among them, Crozwell von Houten grinned. This would be the first combat action that he had seen in quite some time. Though it was not a real war, much less not a true battle, he still felt that Avalon's strength be shown. It was their duty, their livelihood, to defend their people. He would do so without remorse. Be it in showing the humanity behind their blades, or the ruthless efficiency when bloodshed was inevitable.

Mordred remained stoic despite the passion in his words. Everyone knew that the Knight of Round was to be the central figure of this encounter and that made him a prime target. The Knights of the Round were always at the thick of any battle be it martial or otherwise. They did not just order their subordinates to fight when they would not go themselves. It was one reason they were so well respected and admired.

"Men and women of Avalon. The time has come. Carry out your orders, no more, no less. Move out."

With those final words of finality, Mordred slammed the sheathed sword in his hands on the stone he stood on, its strike echoed throughout the courtyard. As a single entity, all those of the 11th Brigade snapped to full attention, boots and greaves resounded in the air as the entire group did so as one. No battle cries were shouted, not even words of acknowledgement. The unit silently filed out of the courtyard, striding with uniform steps and purpose toward the objectives set forth hours before.

As they left the protective walls of their home, their steps became like ghosts and they faded from eyesight. Mages at the exits and gates casting [ _Communal Invisibility_ ] and [ _Mass Ghost March_ ] to hide them from visual and auditory detection. As per the battle plan, the majority of the brigade would encircle the invaders and if they did not heed to words and diplomacy, then they would reveal themselves on Mordred's signal.

The Judge and Executioner Commander gave a silent nod to his personal guard before beginning to walk forward. The main gates to the eastern walls opened as he lifted his helm and donned the protective head gear. The face mask slammed shut from either side of his face rather than from above. A hiss released from it as it sealed itself from airborne gases and the eye slits shined with magical crimson light. He set his eyes hard and made his steps deliberate and even paced.

Upon the seas that separated the two land masses, Remedios crossed with vessels from Rimun that were commandeered in the name of defending the city from the demi-humans via a hard frontal assault. More than a few ship captains were sour at the prospect, they had seen the scouts of that island and wanted nothing to do with it. White paced the deck of the ship she was on in a near frantic rhythm. The sooner they could end this "Queen of Knights's" farce the better.

Gustav and Isandro could only watch over the leading edge of the ship's railings as they made their way to this island. The Crystal Tower kept growing ever larger as they got closer. Nudging his comrade in the ribs, Gustav kept his voice low as not to attract too much attention.

"Isandro, look at the size of it! I can't even imagine what such a thing is for, much less how it came to be."

The other paladin nodded in agreement. He had never seen such a thing in his life. Its brilliant blue radiance made him wonder if the entire thing was magical in some way. Shuddering at that idea, he sealed it away. If that really was the case, then what did that mean for those living around it?

"I doubt it is a man made construction. I've no idea Gustav."

Neither man noticed that the ships were all fast approaching the island proper until the lead ship slowed and began to drop anchor. The shore was not far off, but the draft of the ships that they had commandeered were not suitable any closer. Smaller boats tied to the sides of the ships would have to transport the soldiers the remaining distance. As the boats were let down, those on lookout could only stare at the alabaster walls lined with banners of pendragon blue that swayed in the breeze. They could not see any signs of activity outside the walls in general from any sort of populous.

The area around the beach shore that the first boats began to row toward were surrounded on either side by rocky cliff faces at least forty feet or higher that jutted out at the top, making it impossible to scale. From his place in a crow's nest of the ship he had boarded, Pavel Baraja could only grind his teeth in unease.

 _Surely they would have seen us all approaching long before this point. Do they not care? Have they already planted defenses of a magical nature? This utter lack of a response has me concerned. Wait, what is that?_

From his place in the nest, he could barely make out the what he could only imagine to be massive double gates at the bottom of the walls open. He expected an armed force like theirs, but the three figures that exited were followed by no one and the gates shut as they passed through. With his keen eyes, he could tell that these three were no ordinary individuals. They each wore boldly colored cloaks and wore full armor. Were they some kind of war emissary? That had to be it, no one could stand against 20,000 and then some soldiers.

On her own ship, Neia Baraja's sharp eyes narrowed even as she held her breath in what she felt was some strange combination of awe and dread. The alabaster walls were massive! Yet beyond those walls lay another set of them even taller than their outer siblings! Further within you could see the castle that had to be what this "Demon Dragon Queen" - according to Remedios – called home. It rose high into the skies and merged with the tower of crystal that reached so far into the air that clouds blocked their view of it. Seagulls and other flying creatures circled the massive structure lazily.

She found herself questioning things even more after hearing her mother's suspicions.

 _What kind of demon dragon spawn would make their home in such a bright and open place? What people would remain with such a being?_

As she thought such things the gates opened and three individuals exited by themselves before shutting behind them. Her eyes trained on them and her stomach clenched. She could scarcely believe her eyes.

"What kind of warriors are these? I can't see any weaknesses from here. Are they delegates sent to meet us? What kind of delegates wear full armor?"

The three individuals stopped after a few minutes of walking towards them, but those in the small boats and rushing toward shore would not see these three people until they traversed up the slope that the beach made. The sandy nature of the land gave way to more compact and sturdy soil and eventually to soft, almost silken grass that nary had a booted foot crush its delicate blades.

Neia made her way down the crow's nest as quickly as she could safely manage, having never been upon a sea fairing vessel before, it took her longer than she had wanted and she managed to catch one of the final small boats to the shore. Unknowingly, she had matched her father's movements and though they were in differing vessels, they both made landfall at the same instance. At the head of the very crowded beach, Remedios was being swayed by Gustav and Isandro to hold forward movement until they were all upon land and accounted for.

White ground her teeth impatiently, tapping her foot in the sand and making a hole there deeper and deeper as captains did head counts. The only thing that managed to keep her from rushing off with the very first to hit land with her was the eagerness she could see in a great number of their eyes to show their might against the demi-humans that now knocked on their western doorstep.

Back at the gates of Avalon, Mordred stood stoic with his sheathed sword planted in the ground in front of him as they waited. All of the brigade was in position and from the looks of things thus far, had remained undetected.

"Really now . . . None of them possess the ability to cast Tier III [ _See Invisibility_ ]? Lord Draconis Brightblade wasn't lying about the difference of power in this New World."

The Judge next to him chuckled softly at the criticism of their opponents. The Executioner on his opposite scoffed with a tone of disdain.

"Even our novice officers and senior non-officers are trained to take [ _Invisibility_ ] into account with any engagement lest the opponent is well known for not possessing that power. For a kingdom's forces that allegedly battle against demi-humans, they are being shamefully brazen. Anyone with half a mind would be able to deduce that we are not some tribal rabble."

The Judge laughed lightly at her words before gently admonishing her.

"Keep in mind dear Executioner, that even the 'tribal rabble' has its moments of glory. Or do you forget the war we fought against The Mongol Monguls?"

The dark armored woman huffed a bit in mock indignation before laughing. Regaining her composure rather quickly, she shook her head as she sighed heavily.

"The two are not even a comparison and you know it. Though I do see your words for what they are noble Judge."

The Mongol Monguls were a Guild that had been fairly high ranked among the many that existed in YGGDRASIL's heyday. They were a tribal styled guild that made frequent use of the guild wars functions. They had attacked Avalon twice in the past and both times been repulsed mainly due to superior tactics and equipment. Though, to be fair, the second attempt breached the western wall and actually made the city's automatic defenses upon the inner wall activate. After that . . . ?

Annihilation.

There hadn't been a third try by the Monguls ever since.

The sounds of armored soldiers moving their way towards them silenced any remaining banter between the two subordinates. They could see the banners first and foremost as the mass of soldiers and paladins approached. Mordred eyed them carefully, looking for archers in the mix. There were a few, but not enough, no where nearly enough to comprise a proper portion of an armed mass of troops. Perhaps the few they brought were their sharpshooters. Never the less, few troops from the brigade he deployed would be harmed by projectiles.

As they all came into full view, he had to admit that at least the paladins which stood out due to their full plate and tabards, looked decent enough of the surface. However, he could see no unified discipline among their ranks. There was no uniformity unless you counted them all being in a single giant horde a group. The standard army from what he could tell from the lack of tabards and the abundant lack of full plate mail, many only wearing jack chains over cloth jerkins or chain shirts with cured leather armor.

His heavy sigh of pity was not missed by his two guards.

"They really mean to try and attack us with _this_?"

The Executioner was flabbergasted. The Judge sighed as his superior did, what an utter waste of effort. These Roble soldiers could spend eternity pounding upon the walls of Avalon and never get through. Yet society would drive them made about the noise complaints once they realized that noise would be all that this force would amount to against their static defenses.

That this force dared to tread upon Avalonian soil with ill intent was a massive insult and neither Judge or Executioner would let this pass unless Mordred desired it so. They remembered his words and remained solid statues to the left and right of their superior. To the 11th Bridgade's credit, no one broke cover of the spell via offensive intent at the slight of challenging Avalon without sufficient prerequisite strength of arms. Mordred's words as a Knight of the Round was like the Queen when she was not around, though they all knew that this was a case in which she placed her trust in him during her absence.

Remedios at the lead paused only for the briefest of moments when she laid eyes on the three standing before them. The center most man stood with his weapon in the ground still in its sheath, his hands rested upon the pommel of the weapon. The other two who stood with him did not have their weapons drawn or near their hands. Gustav and Isandro paused and motioned for those behind them to halt. The collection of soldiers and paladins from Roble came to a jerky, unpolished stop. Some of the over eager bumping into those in front of them, creating a ripple of arms and armor that was accompanied by complaints from ones run into.

Those in front stopped their complaining as they took in the sight of the three armored individuals that Remedios seemed to care nothing of and kept marching, either oblivious or not caring that the rest of those with her had long stopped marching. They had stopped at twenty meters, yet White continued to close the distance.

The man in gleaming silvery armor spoke and the strength of the voice made Remedios flinch and finally cease her forward momentum.

"That is far enough Paladin of Roble. Or do you not see that those with you have already come to a cautionary halt? Further approach will not be tolerated when armed and armored as you are! State your business, for you have trespassed upon soil not of your nation's sovereignty. As such, by the laws you must state your intention."

Remedios, not having ever been a squire due to them passing over her due to her talent, was wholly unfamiliar with the concept of a superior outside of being one due to her ability. This manner of being spoken to chaffed her pride greatly.

"Who are you to make demands? I am Remedios Custodio, the commander of the Paladin Order! Our righteous cause demands we seek this 'Queen of Knights' of yours for the slight she has made against Holy Queen Calca Bessarez!"

"I am a Judge of Avalon. One of several who are charged with upholding the laws of the nation and the customs of foreign lands when such interaction is required. No physical harm befell your Holy Queen. Nor did Her Majesty threaten your sovereign. So where does this slight originate from? Few slights call for a call of military arms, much less violation of another nation's boundaries as you have already done. We seek your answers and reasons. Is this your Holy Queen's will?"

Remedios grit her teeth, what kind of point was this man trying to make? By this point Gustav and Isandro had come up to her side. They presumed that moving beyond a certain point meant where Remedios stood, so the entire collection of Roble men and women at arms had slowly progressed until a meter and a half behind the commander of the order. Now that they were closer, those who could see who was speaking rather gawked.

The three armed and armored warriors of this alabaster city wore armor that defied craftsmanship. On one side, was a man in armor that gleamed brightly in the sunlight to the point of nearly blinding. Then on the other was a person of armor so black that night seemed brighter for the stars. A dark feeling of dread crept into the hearts and guts of those in the front who could see this person. Though said individual made no movements nor speak, something like a promised death awaited those it did move against these three.

"Your 'queen' rejected Calca's generous offer despite your 'queen's' tainted nature."

The moment the words left Remedios's lips Gustav and Isandro recognized a massive political taboo had just been crossed. Regardless of the circumstances no one merely slandered another nation's sovereign ruler and got away with it. They were hear to get to the point of the issue, not throw mud. If this 'queen' died in the throws of combat's chaos over the course of this mission, they could deal with the fallout of the defeated later, but now that soldiers like these three presented themselves? What kind of armor gleamed so brilliantly or seemed to drain the very light from the world? Even with great numbers against just these three, how many of theirs would die in the process. Those in front had already begun to demoralize and wake up to the realization that such an immaculately walled city could only have an army of equal quality. Not even the capital of Hoburns was so well walled or beauteous.

"One strike."

Those who could hear him turned puzzled. The man continued speaking.

"You slander our Sovereign and speak of your ruler by her first name with no honorifics. Familiarity of a first name basis without proper titles is a social taboo in and of itself when around others in certain circles. Especially in the realm of national politics. I should give you two out of three strikes in proper etiquette, but I will be generous and only count them both as a single offense. This is a horrible precedent you are setting for your nation and its people Commander Custudio."

He folded his hands behind his back as many had seen their drill instructors do during training. Yet none of them exuded this level of authority and presence. Many among the Roble army swallowed and paled a shade. Being willfully isolated as they were from the other human nations, they only heard things about Re-Estize and rumors of the other nations.

Gustav came up right beside Remedios and whisper feverishly into her ear.

"Listen to that man Commander. He's adorned in armor better than all of ours put together! If he's speaking for that man in the center and he's not a commander, then we are seriously outclassed."

"Are you being a coward Gustav?!" Remedios's reply was barely restrained as she rounded on him. The man frowned and stroked his goatee in frustration.

"Keep your voice down! You'll rankle the morale of all the troops with hysterics! Look at them. I mean really look at them. Why would they send three men to meet more than twenty thousand? I bet you they have archers lined all across those walls. That's what I would do. You make one wrong move and we all become pin cushions."

Remedios reluctantly did so. Their armor was definitely better than anything she had seen on soldiers, but such flashy armor could be purely ceremonial and that stuff didn't protect like her plate mail. She was certain that her sword could cut through such pompous looking armor and its holy power would decimate that evil looking one.

Isandro began to sweat. Having been one of the Nine Colors by the old ruler's word and acclaim, he had heard tales of men and women who could be considered "heroes". Armor and arms of incredible make and power, some of which seemed outlandish, others oddly bland. These three did not just look the part, but seemed to carry a weight of power around them that did more than arms and material possession ever could to impress upon him their potential powers.

If there were such "heroes" among this Avalon and they called this Queen of Knights their sovereign and respected her enough to take offense to slandering her, then what did that make her in kind? He had a strong feeling that Remedios had yet again flown off at the hilt, but this time, the backlash would be unstoppable.

All of the men and women in the area of the Roble forces swallowed as even the middle and back ranks began to realize what was going on. Gustav swallowed hard as he knew a bit too well that Remedios was not one suited to talking things through. He stepped forward and bowed.

"I apologize for this breech in etiquette. Commander Custodio phrased that poorly."

The dark armor clad figure stepped forward this time and her voice made him shudder.

"Oh? And who are you to stand and speak in place of your commander? My esteemed compatriot Judge upholds our laws and oversees our interactions with foreign powers. Even Her Majesty must take care in such regards."

That admission stunned the gathered forces. A ruler who had to answer for laws broken like any other citizen? A position of power that held authority even over the Sovereign of a nation? What kind of nation was this Avalon? Remedios frowned as she glared at this evil woman in armor blacker than night.

"Who are you then, to speak of such things?"

An aura of rippling shadowy energy shot out from the woman clad in blackest armor like a wave upon the waters. The eye slits in her helm sparked with menacing crimson light.

"As my compatriot is a Judge of Avalon. I am one of its many Executioners. We bring judgment down upon those found guilty of atrocious breaches of the law and those of our foreign neighbors when in their lands. The Queen herself has approved of our positions as a necessity in ensuring that she does not become a tyrant unchecked. We serve the people first, our Queen second."

If the congregation of Roble soldiers and Paladins were taken back by the Judge, then this woman who claimed the ominous and damning title of Executioner and wore it with apparent pride had utterly slack jawed them all. A ruler of a nation with walls and a castle like this willingly placed such a collar around her neck? It was sounding less and less like the kind of demon spawn that Remedios painted her out to be.

Yet somehow, for Pavel and Neia Baraja, the auras didn't quite make sense. The stifling pressure seemed to come from all sides, not just the front. They could both see the figures before them due to their locations at either far end of the mass they had become. How could such pressure be coming from all sides?

Pavel dared not touch the arrows in his quiver for fear of some magical attack catching them all from some random location. Neia did not go for her weapons either, but she was concerned about their distance from the massive alabaster walls before them. What kind of shooting could be done by archers from such a high structure?

"What kind of queen does such a thing? Permitting her own to raise arms against her if they feel the need to?"

One of the soldiers to her right mumbled just loud enough for her to hear. Others around him nodded silently. Still tense and concerned about the pressure they were feeling, she looked about her surroundings and squinted her eyes at a peculiar sight. Their was a slight breeze upon the area due to the sea that surrounded the island.

Yet in spite of this fact, a large ring like shape in the swaying meadow like grass did not move with the wind. Rather, it was packed down, as if . . .

Realization dawned in her mind! Something . . . or worse, _several_ things were surrounding them. Her eyes followed the line in the grass that she picked up on and it appeared to be at least fifteen feet deep and spread all the way around them. They were surrounded!

She disappeared into the crowds and began to push her way forward. She had to warn the leadership element that they were at an impossible situation. Completely surrounded by an invisible enemy! What kind of strategist did they employ? What magic was so potent as to hide an entire armed company with nary a sound either!?

"Move, move! Out of my way." She muttered repeatedly as she pushed and shoved her way through. One man elbowed her back rather sharply in the ribs. "Oh sod off! Out of the way!"

Her ruckus was not unnoticed as those in front began to turn and make way for the smaller young woman. Even more stepped out of the way due to the sharp eyes that seemed to scream trouble. Eventually she did break through to the front. The three figures she beheld from a distance came into her view and she flinched from them far more than she did from an angered Remedios and inquisitive looks from Isandro and Gustav.

"Who the hell is breaking formation?"

Neia could have sworn she heard the dark armored woman snort in disdain at the word "formation" that Remedios used. Isandro however, could see the urgency in Neia's eyes and nodded as he kept his voice even.

"What is it squire, is something amiss?"

A bit winded and with adrenaline in her system, she rather blurted.

"Invisible foes surround us on all sides! We are surrounded!"

At that those in front began to look around them frantically. The men and women began to grow frenzied. Remedios looked around with a heavy frown, she saw nothing indicating any such claim. Was this stupid squire delusional? Did her nerves finally get to her?

"What kind of idiocy are you about squire?" She spat in growing aggravation.

"Look upon the grasses. A ring forms of blades pressed down as if being stood upon! Look closer!"

She pointed in either direction off the sides of the three individuals before the mass of Roble Kingdom's troops. Those with sharper eyes than most could make out the pressed and folded grass in that surrounded them. Those with less awareness did not catch the difference due to the breeze that swayed the blades in gentle waves.

Mordred chuckled to himself silently, his subtly shaking shoulders telling his guards that the man found nothing wrong with this development. The Knight of the Round stepped froward at last and held his hand out. A smile spread across his lips, though no one could see it. His voice carried easily across the verdant meadowland they all stood upon.

"You there! Yes, you with the sharp eyes." Neia flinched at her traitorous inheritance from her father being called out. Yet despite that, she could not find herself fleeing this man's voice. Something about it seemed . . . impressed? Elated even? Swallowing hard she pointed to herself to confirm her suspicions.

Remedios rolled her eyes and glared with disdain. "Of course you! Your eyes scream miscreant. Leave it to a squire to cause unneeded panic."

" **Be silent."**

The words rolled over the congregation like thunder. Neia shivered in her tall boots. There was a power in the man's voice and tone that brooked no argument. In her eyes, she stood awed. Compared to Remedios and Calca from her induction ceremony, this man was a Goliath and they were ants. This was a _commander_.

"You command the whole of the Holy Roble Kingdom's Paladin Order? Yet you ridicule one of your own for bearing cautionary forewarning? I daresay that this young woman of sharp eyes has just saved your pathetic existence."

He raised his left hand high and snapped his fingers.

"A tribute to the young squire for her keen eyes and incredible insight! Huzzah!"

Like that, and incredible, thunderous cry arose as one from all around them. The entire 11th Brigade dropped their magical shroud and raised weapons and fists aloft as one.

" **Huzzah! Huzzah! HUZZAH!"**

The men and women of the Roble forces quailed at the sight. When did such a massive gathering of forces surround them?! The man now before them held a hand up for silence and their sudden opposition fell quiet, though all remained at attention. All around them, armor and uniform of quality so fine that it made the captains of the Paladin Order feel inadequate could be seen glistening in the sunlight of the plain. Weapons that radiated magical auras from each and every single troop they laid eyes upon brought forth a different sort of despair.

"All of them? They are all armed with magical arms?"

"It is an army out of the myths! We are ruined!"

Amidst varying degrees of negative reaction or fervent denial on the part of the forces of the Northern Kingdom, Neia could not break her gaze with the eyes of the man who had just praised and called for tribute in her honor for something like being aware of their surroundings. She knew that she should have felt pride and honor beyond description, such a hailing was reserved for heroes! Yet instead she felt humbled . . . like she had done little to deserve such appellation, even from someone who could very well be an enemy. Yet the only thing she felt from this commander of knights was sincerity.

How was he so genuinely impressed by her actions? What made this so special in his eyes. He commanded a force that beggared belief. An armed legion with magical arms and armor outfitted upon every foot soldier? A mixed army at that? She could see clearly demi-humans intermingled with human soldiers both male and female alike. Many of them she had never even seen before. Was that a centaur? Was the one with horns instead of ears and peeking out of her helm a reptilian race of some kind? Were those elf mages? Dwarven shield bearers? The whole sight stunned her very beliefs. That they would cry praises at a single man's command, even for their enemy? It wasn't until the man before them spoke again that she broke free from the daze she found herself floating in.

"Young squire. I am known as Mordred. Knight of the Round Table directly under Her Majesty Queen Artorias Faye Pendragon: Queen of Knights. As one of her Twelve Knights of the Round I would know your name."

Neia's mind latched onto his words. Part of her registered the fact that she was shivering.

 _He wants to know my name. He's one of Twelve? She has twelve commanders like him?! Oh gods! He wants_ my _name. Not answering would be a grave insult. How can I_ not _respond in kind to this commander? This Knight!_

Bowing at the waist, she remembered all of her training and etiquette that her mother had practically beaten into her.

"Neia. Neia Baraja is my name ser Knight."

"Neia Baraja. I shall remember you and those keen eyes of yours. When no other thought of their surroundings upon open land, you noticed and put the pieces of the puzzle together to its correct conclusion. Should more of your countrymen and women done the same, you would not be surrounded by the men and women of the 11th Avalonian Brigade."

The entire brigade slammed their weapons into the ground as one in a single marked sign of solidarity. The showing did its work as the surrounded swallowed nervously.

"The 11th Brigade ser Knight?" Neia asked, suddenly feeling rather bold. That this man was speaking to her specifically over White and her lieutenants told her that his standards were radically different, which meant that Avalon must also be radically different in deciding who was off worthy attention. This interaction she found herself at the center of was telling of the meeting between queens that they all had missed.

A squire speaking like an equal to a Knight directly subservient to his Queen alone? The sight held the awe of those that could see it. Gustav and Isandro held their breaths. If this squire could keep this commander from calling an assault on them from superior armed forces, then they would take it with grace. It was painfully apparent to them that this was not a battle they could win. 11th Brigade? Logic only surmised that there were at least ten before that. Were there more? Were they all outfitted with magical arms and armor? What other powers lay beyond those walls of white? Was it because of that towering crystal pillar?

"Indeed Neia Baraja. Around you are three thousand five hundred of Avalon's stalwart defenders. They are comprised of the citizenry of our nation, not conscripted, but a volunteer force. No one is forced into service against their will. They fight for their families and friends. For the continued peace of their land."

To every single member of the Roble forces, this revelation stunned them. None of these were conscripts? All of them upon coming of age, regardless of gender had to serve in the defense of Roble from the demi-human scourge from the Abelion Hills. The thought of an all volunteer force though . . . and more than ten others like this one? More than forty thousand other soldiers like these?

"That's bullshit!"

Mordred turned his attention grudgingly back to Remedios who stood fuming at not being taken seriously. A squire was more worthy of his attention?

"And why, Remedios Custodio, would that be? Because she has proven that she has enough awareness and quick wit to realize her allies' peril and rushed to inform the leadership? Leadership, woefully incompetent in its ability to ascertain their situation and realize that rushing headlong against such a fortified city with no plan and less than fifty thousand men and women at arms who can't even march in formation properly is sheer suicide? I needed not have this confrontation. You would never have breeched the walls, much less the gates."

"Dammit, enough of this farce! Where is your demon spawn queen?!"

Neia feared for certain that this Knight of Round, Ser Mordred would order the army around them to kill them all, yet he did absolutely nothing. He only stared silently at Remedios before shaking his head slowly.

"Ah . . . I see now. The only farce here is you."

With a burst of speed the Paladin Commander charged Mordred with a cleaving stroke with Safarlisia. Remedios saw nothing but red. The holy treasure of Roble came down in a cleaving stroke only to shriek with an ear piercing ring of metal upon metal. Yet Mordred had not moved an inch. The blade that intercepted Safarlisia was jet black, yet sparkled with motes of swirling violet light like stars in the night sky. Those who saw it gasped, was this one of the swords of darkness spoken of in legend? Was this one of the sister swords to the Dark Knight of old?

The blade was a massive thing. Five feet long just from the blade tip to the hand guard. The hilt itself was another foot by itself. The darkened armored woman was shorter than the blade itself, yet wielded in confidently in a two handed grip. She had interposed herself between her charge and White. Her helm's visor warped and faded like a eerie morning fog. Bright violet eyes with blackened sclera stared at her with pure malice. A sharp shove of her blade sent Remedios stumbling backward.

"You dare lash out at our Liege Lord when he has had no intention on drawing steel on you?! You would be better off as a brute upon the field rather than a commander of men! My liege!"

The woman looked sharply back over her shoulder, silently wishing permission. Mordred frowned in displeasure. With Neia's appearance it seemed like a possible understanding could have been reached if only temporary. Alas, those of less patient mien reared there head . . . and blade.

"For violation of peaceable discord between our two armed congregations via blade drawn in tempestuous fury of emotion born from the inability to take barb from words given sound. I, Mordred. Knight of Round under the grace of Artorias Faye Pendragon of Avalon do declare! [ _Arena Iucidii_ ]."

With the final words spoken, a bright circle of light surrounded the darkened female guard and Remedios. The two whisked away and all present swallowed. Even those of the 11th Brigade seemed unnerved. Neia grit her teeth in dread.

"What was that?"

Mordred sighed and snapped his fingers high above his head. Above them, in the air appeared an image of Remedios and his guard in a meadow field not much different from the very one on which everyone stood.

"[ _Arena Iucidii_ ] or the Arena of Judgment. Is a domain in which I send those who will decide their differences in one-on-one combat. No one may interfere until its outcome is settled. The only way for one to interfere for one of the party's sakes is if the opposed individual breaks the agreements set upon before their engagement. Even I am beholden to this power. Though I am loathe to use this in such a situation, my guard sees your commander's attempt on my life as a matter of pride as my guard. I can only trust that she adheres to the command of our Queen."

Gustav mustered enough courage to dare ask.

"That command was?"

"To treat you humanely."

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 **No Character Profile on this installment, but a certain pissed of Dark Knight guard of Mordred may be getting hers in the next chapter XD.**

 **Time for the Reviewer Responses!**

* * *

 **Shellkira:** Thank you as well! I appreciate you dropping by and your support in reading this fic!

 **MadDan90:** I keep forgetting my reply via PM for you. Hopefully by the end of the week . . . if the 4th of July doesn't knock me for a loop. I like having several strong female characters that can still be womanly and/or girly when need be. Strength need not be physical either. Character and heart say a lot too. Of course, being a badass still gets points in my book regardless. :P

 **Awayuki:** If my consistency in either the epithet of "Sir" and "Ser" is lacking, I apologize! Ser tends to be a trend for medieval Knights and/or Lords or nobles. Behold Ye Olde English. Then again, true Old English is like from Beowulf and sounds NOTHING like either British or American english at all.

I.E.

Waet! We gardena. In geardagum . . .

peodcyninga- prym gerfrunon

otherwise in english translation . . .

Listen! We . . . of the Spear Danes In the days of yore . . .

of those clan kings- heard of their glory.

I can't even type it properly due to the language characters needed but that's a sample. I learned to recite from memory the entire first act of Beowulf in Old English in British Literature during my Junior Year in High School as an Extra Credit assignment. LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT. Wish I could still remember it all. Shucks.

 **RyuujiVantek:** Well, here comes both.

 **Lew89:** It's all a matter of perspective really . . .

 **Saliaskonstant:** I can fully understand your issues with combat in literature and other writing outlets. Hopefully I can help with that in the sections of combat that I do write. I try to put not just the actions, but the thoughts of the fighters' behind the actions, during or after. The audience's views if there is one present. Etc. It will never be perfect, but I do hope you do find it better than most. Thanks for dropping in again and I hope to see more of you around.

Also thank you for the well wishes in my job change!

 **Solarblaster:** I think that all people have a "Remedios" in their life, some of us might have more than one. Eww . . . Anyway, I can kind of understand where Kugane Maruyama was going with her, seeing as she is a direct reflection of someone he knew and was taking issues with.

 **Omegadramon2:** I should be starting that after this portion finishes up. Hopefully.

 **To All Readers.**

 **Thank you so much for sticking with me and The Exiled. Happy 4th of July for those in the United States. And for those of you not a part of the U.S.. I thank you for your support. I may have another chapter out relatively soon Thank you all for your patience in advance!**


	23. Chapter 21: Challenging the Status Quo

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is not mine but Kugane Maruyama's and is licensed by YenPress. During the hiatus until whenever Kugane-san gets back to Overlord for Volume 14, I'll be plugging away here.

* * *

 **Chapter 21: Challenging the Status Quo**

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Artorias kept her hand upon the fin of the sea creature leading them to Leviathan Oceanis's location. Behind her, everyone in her team was in a similar situation. The creatures were some kind of mix between a dolphin and manta ray. They were a friendly creature and speed them along underwater far faster than they could swim normally. Lywellen had wished them luck and returned to the waters around Avalon. When they had left the council chambers, it appeared that Lancelot had in some manner, befriended the merfolk that had dropped his sword earlier.

She was glad that the two had been able to smooth things over a bit, despite the wary looks that the guards continued to give them until they were gone. The elder that had spoken with them concerning Leviathan Oceanis had mentioned its ability to summon squalls, waterspouts, tidal waves, and even lightning storms to an extent. Tales spoke of it as both majestic and terrifying all in one. A long and elegant sea serpent who rarely allowed anything that incurred its wrath live to tell the tale.

Assuming it was primarily dealing out water element damage and physical strikes, Artorias and Lancelot were pretty confident that their current gear was ideal for the situation. Granted, much of the information that had been shared with them was second or even third hand knowledge granted from tall tales of elder generations. Then again, they could be completely accurate in a world filled with magic and monsters.

Gareth was of the opinion that Leviathan was much like the roaming Uber Elite monsters of YGGDRASIL and held special powers that set them apart from all the regular mobs. It was an understandable situation.

Even though they were underwater a great depth, the sun's light still managed to reach down to them just enough to provide a faint illumination. However, as they approached the area Leviathan had been last seen, their underwater guides grew frightened. Letting their friendly guides leave them alone, they observed the area around them. Lucretia Merces swam to the center of their group and closed her eyes in focus. The area around them glowed for a moment before all of their eyes except Artorias's began to glow with magic.

[ _Communal Darkvision_ ] was a Tier VI spell that allowed the party to see in absolute darkness, even if it was limited to black and white. A colossal underwater tornado of currents darkened the waters before them. Not a single sign of marine life dared approach this twister. Not even the massive predatory sharks and squids that they had seen on the trip to this location.

Bubbles frothed all around the phenomenon generated by the Lord of Tides. It was rather incredible to behold. Each of them knew for a fact that there was little way that such an entity did not take notice of their presence in some form or fashion. The group glanced about each other. A group [ _Message_ ] remained active between them as a party.

" _So, inside that underwater twister is Leviathan?"_ Lancelot inquired rather grimly. He rather dreaded the negative consequences of this encounter. Underwater battles were extraordinarily rare in YGGDRASIL and the few that did exist were nightmares.

" _Probably. None of the marine life is around and it sure seems unnatural."_ Gareth hummed in reply. Underwater combat to her was not that different from the three dimensional combat involved with flying, just slower for you and faster for those native to the environment.

" _My Lady, Lord Lancelot. How may I ask are we to pierce the barrier of rushing currents that Leviathan has cloaked itself in?"_

Maribelle's question was a valid one. Rushing currents were dangerous and even abilities that prevented things like knock back or dragging effects in YGGDRASIL would not promise the same results against magically affected natural occurrences. As if to answer her question however, the swirling tides twisted and warped to form an opening in the mass of vicious currents.

More than just a bit leery of such an event, the group swallowed. This definitely was not something a monster without intelligence would do. Claire approached the opening first, glancing in before cautiously placing herself right at the entrance. She could see the massive body of Leviathan inside and when she peered in, she was met with the being staring down at her from above. Giant crimson eyes peered at her with a level of intelligence that seemed to tell her that it was waiting on them. Fairly certain that she was not about to be the target of a sudden attack, she motioned for the rest of them to approach.

" _It sees me yet does nothing but look at me. I believe it has known about our presence for some time and was expecting us."_

The entire group slowly made their way through the opened portal to discover the entire area beyond was completely devoid of water. In direct defiance of gravity, Leviathan was coiled about itself in the center of this massive ovoid of air. Each of them floated in the center without the assistance of flying magic as they looked up at it.

Artorias and her friends glanced around in more than just a bit of awe. This was very telling of its power and they all knew immediately that he had to be far above the rabble of this New World by a very wide margin. Gareth made a mental note to make use of analytical spells to figure out Leviathan's rough estimate in comparison to the monsters and bosses that they had faced in the past. As she thought this, the Lord of Tides gazed at them all with bright crimson eyes. Everyone could see the obvious intelligence in those orbs.

Lucretia smiled in open admiration.

"To see my hypothesis of Leviathan proven true. It is as terrifying and majestic as described all in one. How so very fascinating."

The serpentine Methuselah turned its eyes to Lucretia and the group grew rather wary. Did it realize it was the topic of her words? Was it aware? Its massive head titled from one angle to the other before lifting up and letting what sounded to them like some gargling noise before suddenly spearing them all with lightning.

Taken off guard, the instinctively flinched, yet no pain accompanied the strike. Curious to the phenomenon, they all glanced around at each other. Checking for changes or markings on one another, there were none.

" _ **Though art intriguing mortals to enter unto mine presence . . . my desmense . . . and not be overcome by terror. Your curiosity and intrigue have verily captured mine attention."**_

Even though it sounded like garbles, bubbling popping, and swirling waters; words formed within each of their minds. It startled them for a moment, but Lucretia was beside herself with excitement.

" _ **Thou didst enter mine realm armed yet not in malice or aggression. I have observed thine discord and discerned thine objectives. It is this reason for which I have deigned grant unto thee this boon of a civilized discord."**_

Artorias smiled openly. Even though she did not particularly mind if it came to a physical confrontation, she did worry that this being's powers would send tidal waves about the surrounding areas. Conversing like this was beyond her wildest hopes at this very moment. She bowed deeply and her friends followed suit.

"I do thank you for such a generous and gracious boon Lord of Tides."

Leviathan chortled at her words. Its massive form rippled as its head reared back in amusement. As it returned its gaze to them, more burbling aqueous sounds came from he ancient creature.

" _ **Such manners for a communion with an elder existence such as I. The old etiquette is forgotten among these people of the current era. This entertains me greatly. Time and experience hath instilled unto me that mortals do not seek the primordials without due cause."**_

Taking this as her opening, Artorias nodded solemnly before speaking again.

"Leviathan Oceanis. I am Artorias Faye Pendragon of Avalon. I sought you out this day out of the interest of the safety of my people."

The creature before them moved about, its form uncoiled slightly and then tightened on itself a bit as if it was a person crossing their arms over their chest. It lowered its head to directly look at Artorias.

" _ **This one would presume that your petition this day would have to do with the denizens of the mainland. I have heard through the seas and its many denizens of your efforts to live in peace with the waters."**_

That admission sparked everyone's interest. Yet that was not a topic for this moment.

Leviathan slowly moved about but kept its gaze on them. Gareth remained a bit wary, knowing full well that some field boss encounters in YGGDRASIL started peaceful, but became full on bouts of aggression in a hurry. Despite this, she did not draw her weapon. No need to accelerate the problem if that wasn't its intention. Normally these kinds of things culminated into some kind of trial. Secretly she hoped that it wasn't some lengthy, multi-faceted fetch quest or even worse . . . an escort quest.

 _Damn it that would suck! Please no escort . . . Please no escort . . . !_

Lancelot wondered about just how strong Leviathan truly was. Colossal wandering creatures like this were always exceedingly stronger than normal. The real question on his mind as a World Champion was just _how_ strong.

Not that he wanted a full fledged battle, but it was his gamer's curiosity. He could see that Lucretia Merces was more interested in conversing with the serpentine methuselah like a student of magic. Lady Maribelle was a bit more reserved as she was fully aware that certain creatures were simply not meant to be fought single handed. Leviathan was quite obviously one of those.

Artorias held her hands upturned to Leviathan as she spoke in an explanatory tone.

"We were informed that you sank a ship bearing a message from the queen of the mainland nation here bound for her southern half's counterpart. Due in part to this, and our appearance off of their shores, it is believed by a number of their people that we of Avalon are responsible and as such, a military action is being taken against my people. While I do not believe them capable of harming my fervent defenders, it will become a hindrance and I do not wish my people said distress."

" _ **Thou believes, or more appropriately spoken – hope that mine departure from these waters would appease that worry. Yet as we converse the tides echo of ships of man approach thine land's shores en masse."**_

They all nodded gravely. They knew Mordred well and he was as much a stalwart defender as any of them were, but they all would rather not drag this out for longer than any of them would deem necessary.

" _ **Thou art resolved if steel is drawn, yet seek paths to circumvent violence for not only thyself, but thine enemy as well. A test of thine might that would support and galvanize thine wisdom shall determine whether mine aide would be earned!"**_

Maribelle tentatively approached the Lord of Tides.

"Lord of Tides, what manner of trial would this entail? Of what manner of might would prove to you worthiness of this boon?"

The enormous orbs of vermilion the hue of dark wine fixated on the sister of the Church of Bahamut. In spite of her desire to shy away, she stood her ground and remained steadfast. She was selected by Queen Artorias herself! How could she give in to her own weakness when the possible lives of her brothers and sisters of Avalon may be on the line?

" _ **A battle against the primordial powers to prove that thine will shall not falter upon the inexhaustible tides of man's foolish wiles."**_

The group surmised it was waxing poetic. Yet they understood its meaning. A trial by combat against his mighty powers of water and the oceans.

Artorias nodded before readying herself. The zigzag make of the [ _Skyward Mirrorblade of Rending_ ] flashed into view in Artorias's left hand. Lightning crackled along its length as she held it before her face in meditation before raising it aloft in salute. She did not draw her main weapon. It would reveal itself when truly needed. Yet this action galvanized the rest of them to draw arms. As they did so, Artorias activated one of her Ruler Class abilities. The group was engulfed in a silvery sheen of magical force.

[ _Honor of the Queen's Guard_ ] was a party buff that lasted a considerable amount of time. It raised their defenses and agility so long as she was recognized as the party leader.

Gareth and Claire's polearms materialized in their hands. Lucretia opened the left half of her magical tome. The right half would remain shut unless truly needed. She was a magical force of nature without the weapon fully released, using everything it had to offer at the opening of a fight was ludicrous.

Maribelle sighed as she readied her healing staff. The tall, magical implement carved from a holy yew tree and melded with holy alloys from Asgard. Infused with light from an angel, it could heal by itself with a touch, though it still didn't hold a candle to the higher tiered healing spells. Its touch alone was equal to healing from a Tier VI [ _Healing Hands_ ] spell. But for people of Artorias, Lancelot, and Gareth's caliber, if they truly needed healing then the spell would not be potent enough to heal injuries that could seriously threaten Avalon's strongest. The [ _Epochal Respite_ ] was a Legendary Tier healer's staff, and gifted to her by Bedivere of the Knights of the Round. She treasured it dearly.

Lancelot drew his sword and set his stance. The blade in his hands was the [ _Blade of the Graviton Titan_ ], the Starlight Damascus Steel blade shimmered as if eager to clash against such a colossal opponent. This would be the first fight that he would engage in in this New World. As one of the nine World Champions of YGGDRASIL, there was no way that he wasn't becoming eager to test his mettle against something that could possibly give him a challenge.

To be honest, after hearing from Draconis about just how weak denizens here were, he was truly worried that any challenge left would only come in the form of other player encounters if they ever occurred and the devastation that could result was not something he truly wanted to be known for. Moments like this however, were oddly enlightening. They were not near any major signs of civilization and it seemed like Leviathan was content to not have them all fight near densely populated areas, so this was a good sign in his book.

Gareth twisted her halberd in her grip as she readied herself. Despite having sparred against Mordred several days before now, she was a bit nervous. She had never been one for fighting and her near prodigious skill in doing so had honestly frightened her at first. Through her interactions with the others in the guild and the friendships she had garnered during that time, she was more comfortable with things like sparring and the occasional guild war, though more often than not, she made use of hit and run tactics as a mounted flier. During the few times she had PvP'ed though, many players had never challenged her again. Mordred and Lancelot respected her immensely when they fought her in sparring and Lancelot himself, one of the nine World Champions had mentioned that if she had optimized for PvP and challenged the last tournament, she would have bested him hands down.

It was not something she was terribly proud of.

She much preferred guiding and helping new or struggling players understand the immensely complicated and intimidating Dive MMORPG that was YGGDRASIL. She cherished Artorias like a sister she never had and Draconis considered her family because of their close friendship. In many ways, she owed both the Queen of Avalon and her lover her life. She had lost her fiance during the Arcology War and had been a nurse in real life. The horrors of the war had left a mark on all involved and she had been severely depressed. Hopped up on narcotics and near the point of taking her own life due to the cruel realities of the oppressive world, she had found the "online DMMO-RPG therapy" group for veterans and those associated with them very odd. Curious, she created an account and logged in, swiftly messaging them and encountering Artorias and Draconis at the same time. The brightness that they both exuded in such an expansive game and in seeming direct defiance of the normal had drawn her in.

Eventually, she had learned of Draconis's IRL fate during the war and the injuries both physical and mental that he had suffered. Similarly, his recovery due in no small part to Artorias's IRL personae had touched her deeply and so in memory of her lost love, had dived fully into the game and helping them find others like them to play with and help cope with the after math of the war. Though others played with them at times, not all of them joined Avalon. Many went on to found other guilds or find other ways to cope via other games. Yet they had all reached a kind of mutual respect and understanding that somehow transcended normal affiliations and friendships.

With their help she had slowly, painfully, but surely had weaned herself from the drugs to the point of recovery. She was too afraid of another relationship, but did value her new friends as family.

 _Even though I'm not fond of this, for her . . ._ she looked at Artorias, bold and calm in spite of the coming fight. _I owe them so much. There's no way I'm going to let them go it alone!_

Setting her stance and expression in determination, Gareth shed her normally happy-go-lucky nature for the warrior that even Lancelot erred on the side of caution with. Beside her, Claire grit her teeth in apprehension.

 _Oh gods! Lady Gareth has that look on her face! If she's this serious about this encounter, then I had better not slack off either!_

Lucretia Merces smiled with mischievous glee at this grand opportunity! Runes and magical circles sparkled across the pages in the left of the tome in her hands. A custom made item from her master. She was familiar with the unique individuals of Avalon being crafted by the Knights of the Round themselves. It was a knowledge gifted to her by her creator Lady Gareth. While she was not entirely sure as to why she was imparted with this potentially devastating knowledge, she knew that she was trusted to hold that knowledge dear.

Anything mystical and fantastical in nature drew Lucretia's attention like a moth to a flame. The many scrolls of YGGDRASIL's world history sated her night time studying. Her magical experiments were nearly innumerable by now . . . or at least she had forgotten how many she currently had going on.

Yet as a strategist for Avalon, she was also brutally pragmatic when necessary. This would be a good measure of their abilities in order to more efficiently level the balances of power of the New World against those of her creator and her peers.

 _Lady Gareth has shed her insecurities for the Queen's sake. Lord Lancelot is eager to stretch his martial muscle again and the Queen herself is rather eager to fight despite her diplomatic role. Hmm . . . this shall make an interesting moment in the newest pages of Avalon's history._

The emerald tipped blond woman smirked as she licked her lips in anticipation. Casting a swift spell wordlessly, she personally found calling out the names of your spells and abilities in combat ridiculous when they were only a courtesy for your own party for the sake of friendly fire and timing.

It had no Tier. It was a battle recording ability she had from her Grandmaster Tactician class. Officially, it was an ancient power that tacticians of the highest caliber had perfected in pursuit of mastering the battlefield and war. In its simplest explanation, it was a like a replay recording that could be analyzed from all angles later with the option to slow or stop moments for better study. Any combat or pivotal moment in Avalon's history had seen Lucretia there, and she could play back them all. No one knew Avalon's lifespan better than Lucretia, Dean of the Magic Academy.

Everyone was ready for combat and Leviathan reared back, roaring his challenge made official before rocketing upward and breaking through the surface of the ocean and into the sky.

The vortex generated by the methuselah dragged everyone with it. In an instant, they were no longer underwater, but in the sky. Leviathan dove back down into the seas, the water from the ascension beginning to come down like rain. Finding themselves now skyward, Gareth and Claire lyrically whistled, summoning their mounts instantly to their sides. Mounting up mid fall, they hustled to take up orbiting positions over the ocean. The rest deployed [ _Fly_ ] spells or other trinkets that allowed the same ability.

Leviathan sprang up from the depths and reared back. Looping over itself as it readied to battle Artorias and her party it roared mightily. The sound echoes throughout the air, so much so as to create a pressure wave. Resisting it through grit teeth, they all could see the watery spheres before its maw. The spheres transformed into high velocity gouts of super pressured streams.

Scattering about in the air, the group dodged with varying degrees of flamboyance. Gareth and Claire both spiraled through the air on their mounts, leaving trails of feathers in their wake. Lancelot side stepped the outer edge of the watery beams. Maribelle and Artorias leaped to the left and right respectively, the beams of water capable of cutting stone clean through passed harmlessly between them. Lucretia twirled out of harm's way, her robes swayed in the blowing winds.

The entire group maintained a broad spread in order to limit the number of people Leviathan could target in a single attack. Artorias immediately began to fall into her combat role as a Wild Card slot holder and leader.

"Keep a respectable distance between each other but nothing beyond fifteen yards if possible. Gareth! You're on Seeking duty! Lancelot, draw Leviathan's ire if you would. Claire, keep an eye out for sneak attacks against Maribelle and defend her. Take what strikes you can against him when possible, but your priority is her safety above all else."

Claire saluted with a cry of acknowledgement before circling above and around Maribelle in a wide orbit, ready to intercede to keep the sister of the church safe. Gareth broke away from the group and started an enormous, randomized satellite path around the colossal primordial. Artorias knew that Gareth was the most open to attack without assistance, but that was the risk of being the Seeker at times.

"Lucretia, make use of your magic how you see fit! I trust your judgment not to exhaust yourself needlessly!"

Gareth had created Lucretia with Gawain and Gaheris's assistance. Of all the NPCs in Avalon, Lucretia had the most damned complicated AI combat algorithm she had ever heard of. As a result, she wasn't afraid to let the Grandmaster perform without exacting orders.

"My Queen?"

Maribelle's inquiry drew her attention and she knew the meaning behind the tentative question. Without looking her direction, Artorias brandished her multi-angled blade and let loose a streak of lightning that struck Leviathan with the force of a Tier VI [ _Dragon Lightning_ ] spell. As the magical assault struck solid and ran its course, she noticed that Leviathan flinched, but did not seem to be too terribly harmed.

"Keep us alive Lady Maribelle. Trust Lady Claire to keep you safe."

Nodding firmly, she set about steeling her nerves for the upcoming battle.

* * *

 **Avalon**

 **-Within Arena Iucidii-**

* * *

Remedios glared at the woman wreathed in dark armor before her. The meadow grass remained around them and under their feet, but the air had changed. It swirled and howled yet was cold as the dead of winter. The woman before her knelt on one knee, her massive sword stood tall in the ground as she seemed to begin to pray. This proclaimed Executioner was shorter than her and dared to mock her by praying to whatever blasphemy she worshiped right in front of her?

 _Fine, she better pray because I'm going to send her damned soul back to hell where it belongs!_

Marching up with no words other than a glare of indignation, Remedios swung at the woman's neck. Safarlisia was a holy blade, this evil existence of an "Executioner" would face its wrath. Against evil entities combined with her paladin abilities, evil entities withered before her.

The holy blade rang with an ear piercing twang of metal instead of flesh. Rebounding from the blow, Remedios frowned in confusion. Her aim had not been off the mark. A second slicing arc, honed by countless repetitions lashed out, determined to leave its mark upon this unholy woman. Yet again her blade was rebuffed with no clear signs of anything intervening. Absolutely unperturbed, the woman continued to pray.

 _Is this some kind of blasphemous mantra?_

The woman's voice reached her ears and she frowned at the words. None of them were anything that she could understand. That was a job for her sister Kelart and for Calca. It was nothing of importance anyway. Yet the words permeated the air and the pressure surrounding that woman became overwhelming. All her instincts began to raise its head telling her that this person was incredibly, inexplicably powerful.

The words she was speaking ceased and she stood from her knelt position.

"One would think that a fighter with divine powers of the faith would be more pious. I find myself rather put off by your lack of devotion."

"I'm devoted enough to ridding mankind of your kind."

"Esther." Remedios frowned even as she quirked a brow in confusion. The woman spoke slowly like a mother would to a child not fully understanding what was being told to her. "I am Esther Fellblood Babylonia of Avalon's Executioners."

The woman's black sclera and violet irises bored into Remedios. The shorter woman did not reach for her great sword, instead, she approached it. In direct defiance of gravity, she walked up the massive flat of the weapon like a wall before balancing on its pommel without a care in the world. Tapping the hilt with the top of her left foot even as she balanced effortlessly on the pommel with the ball of her right, she sighed. Folding her right arm behind her and taking her left arm in her hand from behind, Esther Babylonia gazed pitiably at Remedios

"You ignore the most basic of courtesies. Even daemons and devils have more manners than you. Angels surely would scoff at your pitiable attempts of religious sanctity."

"What the hells would you know about angels? They are divine and holy . . . !" Remedios stopped mid sentence as Esther suddenly appeared so close that their noses nearly touched. The eyes of Esther seemed impossibly huge in her view. Yet despite the sudden intrusion of space, Remedios found that she could not swing her sword in defense.

"What . . . . would . . . _**I**_. . . know . . . of . . . angels . . . ?" Esther gave White a smile that chilled her to the bone. A single fang protruded from her grinning lips. Bringing up a single index finger, the Executioner traced the edge of Remedios's cheek. Despite the fury of being teased in such a way, she still could not move. Esther kept eye contact throughout it all, her eyes unblinking, filled with her own kind of indignation.

"They are monsters worse than any other in the realm. Terrifying and powerful, you know not a true angel. Daemons? Devils? They are _fallen_ angels condemned to damnation from the light. Light that brings nothing but the searing truth which exposes all."

Esther returned to the pommel of her weapon in an instant.

* * *

 **Esther's Battle BGM of Awesome: Nier Automata = Destruction**

 **. . . Play? . . .**

* * *

"Prepare thyself insolent one."

The violet irises in the Executioners eyes began to glow and Remedios suddenly felt the murderous killing intent. Esther arched backwards, throwing her great sword into the air with her feet. Remedios seized her opportunity and lashed out, making use of one of Saraflisia's abilities to strike at a distance with a lashing slash of holy energy. Not content with just that, she charged at full speed to follow up if the woman dodged it. No evil entity could block her strike without severe wounds.

Not Esther Babylonia.

The woman landed from her back flip, her massive weapon spinning end over end in the air above her. The heavy blade pushing air at a force that generated a harsh and deep "wooshing" sound. Turning a full three-sixty spin upon the earth, the dark clad Avalonian back handed the streaking assault into harmless shards of light with her right fist before stepping into Remedios's charge and halting her follow up attack with her left hand. Remedios was stunned as her opponent not only brute forced through the energy wave, but caught her sword hand mid-swing in her own and held her solid.

The right hand of her enemy was held open and palm upturned behind her, the great sword of darkness and violet star patterns landed deftly in its mistress's hand. Spiked armored fingers gripped the hilt of the sword. Remedios knew what was coming next and tried to pull away with no success. The strength of this damnable woman! Her hand was caught around her sword hilt and Esther's held her hand on her sword, imprisoning her to Saraflisia.

The attack came from right to left, a broad open swing that was more a club strike than a slash as the flat of the giant weapon came around. Attempting to shield herself with her left arm, Remedios felt the heavy blade connect and pick her up off of her feet. She mildly registered the hand keeping her trapped letting her go, but it was too late.

Esther spun around like a top, her circular swing was actually a weapon skill. [ _Circular Repulsion_ ], a level 20 Area of Effect knock back against mobs. The attack carried Remedios full spin before launching her back the direction she had charged from. Violet cloak whipped around in the wind generated from the attack and the Executioner smiled lightly. The follow up was a textbook assault, but meant little against a veteran. Spinning the great sword around her fingers, she came to halt in her circle and came to a halt in a deep combat stance.

Ranged melee attacks like energy slashes and other "projectiles" were not exactly common, but because of the desire to have such a flexible option, many YGGDRASIL veterans expected at least one or two variants of such a move from melee fighters by level 50. Normally only capable of traveling down a single, straight pathway, they were usually single target strikes that carried little in the way of damage.

They were second rate at best, parlor tricks at most at high level play. Merely meant to chip damage a monster or player when their was nothing else at their disposal. Few fighters had a ranged melee that actually worried magic casters and actual ranged damage classes. Not that there were not exceptions to this though. Esther personally knew that each and every one of the Knights of the Round and Lord Draconis himself had at least one ranged melee attack that could be a game over for magic casters and ranged damage classes. Granted, they were one shot uses per battle, so if you missed or it didn't kill . . .

Of course, this was not one of the kinds of fights that called for such a thing against this commander of paladins. Esther knew true paladins from the past were nothing like this garbage. They were decisive, ruthless when forced to draw steel, merciful to the weak and those seeking sanctuary, and thoughtful in reflection of both themselves and others. These Holy Roble Kingdom fools were nothing of the sort.

Esther did not pursue her target, rather remained still in her battle stance. A low, broad footing combat brace that evenly distributed her weight and the heft of the sword she held in both her hands. The weapon was held evenly with her neck, its point directed at her opponent with the hilt to her right side, farther away from her opponent. Her left flank faced Remedios as she landed roughly. The sword blade took up much of her side profile, making it hard to target her without having to move aside the giant blade first.

Remedios spat dirt as she lifted herself off the ground. The grit and grass disgusted her. What kind of joke was this? Yet her martial instincts told her that this was not an opponent to take lightly. What manner of evil being was allowed to be so strong? What mockery was this that an army of such brilliant gleaming armor and holy appearance allowed such darkness to exist with them?

Looking upon the woman before her, she could not see any weaknesses, no signs of an apparent opening. Those violet and black eyes seemed to echo the blade that she carried.

"Damn you."

[ _Flow Acceleration_ ] Remedios activated the martial art and rushed in from a different angle. Taking a more circuitous route, she came around behind to try to assault the dark knight from her blind spot. Once again, the commander of the paladins lashed out with Roble's holy sword.

 _This will . . . ? What?_

Remedios was stunned as her attack rebounded off of the great sword of her opponent. When had she moved the weapon to intercede? She could have sworn that she had charged in when she had her back. Moving again to her blind spot, Remedios attacked only to yet again be rebuffed by the darkened blade. What was happening? Did she have eyes in the back of her head?

Outside of the [ _Arena Iucidii_ ], the convened soldiers of both sides watched as Remedios was continually rebuffed with out a single return stroke from the woman proclaimed to the Roble forces as Esther Babylonia. Gustav bit his lip. What kind of fighter was this woman? Isandro could not help but feel awed by what he was witnessing.

"She's dancing. The Executioner is waltzing with her sword as her partner."

Regardless of the angle Remedios charged from or the arc in which her blade sought her flesh, Esther twirled or stepped with the grace of a ballroom mistress. Her sword was her male counterpart, sliding about with the tips and arms of the cross guard as arms and hands as she flitted about. The great sword was merely a prop. A stand in for her partner as she danced about, keeping the weapon in full view of Remedios regardless of where she was standing or attacking from.

She would step with the blade embraced behind her, her eyes closed as she probably imagined her dance partner embracing her in return. Then she would pirouette and spin the weapon on the tip of its point, deflecting a thrust meant to run her through as she rotated in elegant twirls around the sword, keeping it between them both before dipping low, her back arching like a bridge. She froze in position, hands upon the handle of the weapon like a lifeline or the shoulders of a man. The sword blade rested against her abdomen as Saraflisia scrapped up the flat in a lateral swing attempting to bisect her from left to right.

Rising back to standing in what seemed to be an impossible physical feat, from her position with no push off from the ground, Esther let loose what seemed to be a sigh from her lips. Neia watched in awe.

She could easily imagine what this woman would look like in a ball gown with a man instead of a sword and darkened armor. Yet despite the armor, she moved no less fluidly. How long did one have to wear such armor and move to perform such intricate movements?

"How? What manner of being?"

A content sigh drew several of their attention from both sides of those gathered.

Mordred had removed his helm. Cinnamon brown hair blew in the breeze while emerald green eyes, clear as crystal captivated more than one of Roble's soldiers. This was the Knight of the Round's face?

"No matter how often I view this, it mesmerizes. Esther's [ _Blade Dancer: Waltz_ ]. Yet . . . the true version is something much less mesmerizing and wholly more terrifying."

All of the Roble denizens seemed to think the same thing at once.

What?

As they looked back, the woman was still maneuvering with a level of languid grace that put many women among their number to shame. Remedios just could not do anything to break past the extremely unusual guard of the Avalonian knight.

Remedios growled in ever growing anger and frustration. She had begun to realize what was going on, and it infuriated her. She was being toyed with! Made a fool of! Lunging back to created distance, she noted that Esther did not pursue.

Twirling and subtle, deft footfalls despite her armored limbs ceased and the dark eyed woman gazed at her as if awakening from a dream. Had she been in a trance of some kind?

"Ah. Are you done? I was rather enjoying my dance. It has been some time since I had the opportunity. It does not work that well against stronger opponents, but most of them are beyond even me."

"What the hells are you?"

The look of scorn returned as Esther fully came out of her trance like state. Planting the sword into the earth before her, she frowned in disdain.

"You only think to ask that now?" The Executioner returned to her perch upon the pommel of the sword. This time however, she began to wreath herself in darkness. From the pitch blackness a pair of raven black wings formed from the violet cloak on her back. They flapped once before spreading to their full length. Impossibly huge for her size, with a wingspan of twenty meters either direction, her blackened feathers dusted the ground. A sinewy tail swayed and coiled around the sword blade she was perched upon.

Mordred smirked and chuckled. He would have to chide his personal NPC later, but for now, he knew what she was getting at. This was simple intimidation. The presentation of a fact to dispel a falsehood in their opponent's beliefs. When the option to create one of her race as an NPC came up as an option only he could choose due to his classes, he had pounced on it. After all, he was responsible for many of the fiends and underworld denizens of Avalon. He wasn't Fell Knight Mordred without reason after all.

"Dear commander of paladins. I am a Mephistopheles! A demon of the darkness aspiring to the light. An outcast among her own kindred who is enemy of the darkness yet one of its greatest practitioners. Who better to guide those against the dark than one of its own?"

Remedios gawked openly, as did many of the Roble paladins of the Order. Neia remembered what her mother had told her and swallowed. Demi-humans, humans, and now demons? What kind of place laid beyond those alabaster walls that even a being such a this was permitted to dwell within?

 _How advanced is the society of these people of Avalon? What kind of ruler commands so much respect and charisma to possess even these manner of subjects?_

Remedios recovered from her stupor and raised Saraflisia aloft in fury and denial.

"Holy sword, smite this demon! I declare your holy nature to cleanse evil to cast down this abomination!"

Saraflisia . . . one of four holy swords that were the counterparts to the Swords of Darkness wielded by the Dark Knight of the City-State Alliance. A divine weapon that was capable of emitting divine power all on its own. Once per day it could strike evil as per a paladin's holy smite, but enhanced by a paladin, it could deal grievous damage to evil beings. The light emitted during this powerful ability lengthened the blade by twice its normal reach.

As a holy light, it ignored arms and armor, bypassed defenses and struck true. To the user, its light was not as bright as those witnessing it from without. The light was brighter the more evil the target was. A truly destructive and potent ability. Yet before this woman, the light it did shine with was not blinding. In truth, to those watching it did not seem luminous at all.

Not that Remedios could see this difference anyway. Mistaking Esther's raised brows and confused look for shock and awe, she charged in and swung. Mordred seemed to understand the nature of this holy sword and knew in his heart that his NPC did as well. Esther closed her eyes and allowed the wave of light to engulf her without trying to defend herself. It wouldn't have mattered anyway. It would bypass her attempts to stop it and even though she was certainly agile enough to dodge it . . . she did not see the point in prolonging this encounter any more than it already had. After revealing her true nature, she was ready to put an end to this.

"That is your end demon."

"Oh really?" Esther's tone was amused and sarcastic all in one. Remedios recoiled from the sight of an unharmed demoness. "My end is it? Did you not hear me? I truly hate repeating myself. I aspire to the _light_. I am a good entity that fights evil and helps those who need it. Holy smite powers only work upon evil. Good creatures are left untouched. Especially in a situation such as this." Esther leaned forward and whispered into Remedios's ear. The woman was frozen again. "When . . . I . . . am . . . more . . . righteous . . . than . . . you."

Esther leaned back with a frown as Remedios stared at her in disbelief. The magic of [ _Arena Iucidii_ ] faded and the two returned to the same plane of existence as the rest of the armies. Avalon's Mephistopheles kept her true form, her wings spread wide and open. She hovered in the air just above Mordred, her sword securely held with her tail. Her armored hands had long claws that stretched a foot and a half long each.

"Verdict?" Mordred's question drew morbidly curious looks from those of Roble. Esther shrugged.

"She barely passes as a foot soldier of Avalon. Her holy skill is useful against evil, but anything other than that? The reports from Lord Brightblade far to the eastern realm of the Dragon Kingdom say that the average warrior of the Adventurer's guild is at an advantage against her if they are at least Adamantite. Against our basic soldiers, she would struggle nine times out of ten due to her over reliance on a person's moral code fueling her powers."

Mordred frowned. This was even worse than he feared.

 _So they are even weaker than what Draconis fights now? Lower than level 25?! They'd all be slaughtered by a basic squad of six PoPs much less the whole brigade. Damn it all. Curb stomping seal clubbers doesn't even begin to describe this._

"Soldiers and knights of the 11th Brigade. Your are dismissed. Crozwell von Houten, your team front and center!"

As one, the brigade left or right faced in relation to their positions surrounding the men and women from Roble and marched as a single unit back to the eastern gates of Avalon. Mordred, the Judge, and Esther remained as they were. As the seemingly mystical army departed, a man and five others stopped before the cinnamon haired Knight of the Round. They could only assume that this was Crozwell von Houten. His name rang bells even with the culture divide. "Von" was something reserved for nobles of standing.

"Ser Mordred. Crozwell von Houten, Knight Commander reporting."

Mordred nodded before speaking quietly with the man. After a brief, yet obviously terse conversation that they could not follow due to a new language being spoken between the two men, Crozwell turned to face them. Neia stiffened. He turned specifically to face _her_.

Crozwell approached them and Remedios glared at him. The Knight Commander ignored her outright and stopped before Neia. The bow that she received shocked those around her.

"My liege wishes to extend his appreciation for your keen eyes and mind. You are formally invited to speak with him at length later." He held a hand out and in it was a card of some kind. Finely made beyond any stationary she had seen, it was written in gold! In their language no less!

 _They've gone so far as to learn to read and write our own language as if they were born here! If I refuse . . . if I refuse I'll be insulting him. If I don't though . . ._ Neia could feel countless eyes upon her. To accept an invitation from the enemy . . . even one so powerful was the act of a traitor. An act of treason. She'd be outcast by everyone, including her own family.

But would that really be so bad? She was already judged simply for her sharp eyes. Her father possessed the same yet he never faced prejudices. Was it simply because he was one of the Nine Colors? What kind of irony was that? Her father was honored by being a named color yet just because she shared a trait she had no choice but to possess due to her birth she was ostracized? Her mother was a paladin of the order and a retired veteran! Should she not have at least been given a fair chance given her parentage? Obviously not.

Yet she was finally truly connecting with her mother again. She was beginning to understand the possibilities of the eyes that her father had passed on to her. Did she want to possibly cut that thread that had just begun to reconnect them?

At a time like this what should she do?

Everyone's thoughts and concerns on the matter were swiftly forgotten when a colossal spout of water rose into the skies off the shore to their north. Leviathan Oceanis roared to the heavens as two fliers zoomed overhead, each of them rushing down the massive Lord of Tides with glistening strikes that sparkled in the sun. From above, two figures fell from the massive serpent onto the grasses just a few meters from them.

Staring at these new comers and the massive beast that all of the Roble soldiers knew that none of them dared to face, the man who landed drew awed looks. His armor gleamed even brighter than Mordred's! Yet the woman who landed next to him held a blade of lightning itself and the armor she wore seemed to defy description. It rippled like water and though it dripped, it did not seem like it was affecting her aversely.

The brunette hair was soaked yet she remained regale even with the obvious signs of combat. It was then that they all noticed her other, inhuman features.

"Eyes that glow azure . . . black scaled tail and horns . . ."

Someone muttered. Was this the Queen of Knights? The sovereign of this city who housed such an army and commander who in turn commanded a demon unaffected by their national treasure? She was fighting Leviathan Oceanis?

She stepped forward without hesitation toward the towering methuselah, her sword of lightning left in the ground. The zigzag blade crackled still. Her hand went to her regalia. The sword gifted unto her by the Lady of the Lake. The symbol passed on through tales of old. As the blade left its home, a blinding, brilliant light shone forth from the weapon. A dazzling, blinding white and golden yellow burned the eyes of those looking on before it dimmed just enough to be manageable.

Lancelot grinned and chuckled. She had been hanging back, refraining from attacking as she watched and waited for the right time. Now, with her homeland beneath her feet, she was free to bring out its potential. He supposed it was good that they were facing north and not say . . . east . . .

Artorias Faye Pendragon had drawn God Tier weapon: [ _Excalibur Zeta_ ].

* * *

 **Character Profile 17**

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 **Esther Fellblood Babylonia**

 **Grotesque**

 **Position:** Executioner of Avalon, Duchess of the Underworld Sanctum

 **Residence:** Avalon

 **Alignment:** Good (400 Karma)

 **Racial Levels:** Fiend = 10 lvs.; Mephistopheles = 10 lvs.; Redeemed Fiend = 5 lvs.

 **Class Levels:** Knight = 10 lvs.; Dark Knight = 5 lvs.; Sorceress = 10 lvs.; Elderitch Disciple = 5 lvs.; Bard = 10 lvs.; Dancer = 10 lvs.; Dervish = 5 lvs.; Dark Songstress = 5 lvs.; Rogue = 10 lvs.; Shadow Dancer = 5 lvs.

 **Total Levels:** 100 (Racial Levels 25/Class Levels 75)

 **Status:** Comparative Ratio on a Scale of 100

 **HP:** 70

 **MP:** 50

 **Physical Attack:** 60

 **Physical Defense:** 50

 **Dexterity:** 85

 **Magical Attack:** 85

 **Magical Defense:** 80

 **Resistances:** 95

 **Special:** 100

Created by Mordred as one of Avalon's darker NPCs. She is one of the rare Mephistopheles demons of YGGDRASIL. Known by the player base for their good alignment and friendly natures. They were highly sought out for their quests and rewards among other things. As his NPC, she helps the members of Avalon gladly and adheres to their code of conduct and laws. Though she is not above bending them to the extreme in certain cases for the benefit of those around her regardless of origin.

Though she can be a wild card in predictability, she is a reliable ally and loves Mordred dearly. His control over the dark arts of the Dark Knight class and his known compassion and mercy to the oddest of opponents at times garners both her teasing and respect. As the only man she has taken keen interest in, she is vaguely aware of her existence as his creation, but has no issues with it. She despises the willfully ignorant and loathes undue arrogance.

A talented and veteran dancer and entertainer, when she is not armored and ready for battle she is far more relaxed and loves to dance for the people's spirits and morale. Though not without her flaws, she tries her best to remain a good being for the sake of others and those she considers family. According to her background, she is over two thousand years old. Her combat dancing is well known by the people of Avalon.

* * *

 **Character Profile 18**

* * *

 **Leviathan Oceanis**

 **New World Threat Level:** 140+

 **Actual Threat Level:** Level 95 Boss Class (Actually Level 110 Effective Difficulty)

One of several primordial beings of the New World. Leviathan Oceanis has ruled the seas perpetually unchallenged. It is immensely intelligent and powerful, commanding waters and storms alike. Truly devastating in its home environment, it rues the misguided hubris of man upon their naval vessels and is not afraid of making that fact very well known.

As no one of the New World has ever challenged it directly and lived, mainly due to the very nature of the confrontations, all believe it to be unassailable and suicidal to attempt to fight. Feared and revered even by sea born races with and without intelligence, it has few things it need be cautious of. Mainly other primordials. Especially the primordial known as The Lord of Levin, and the elder leader of the all primordials . . .

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses**

* * *

 **Thristan:** I can't imagine the experiences of a Hell Jumper. Takes a lot of willpower to do that job. Good footwear too.

 **Saliaskonstant:** Lolz. No, this isn't going to be a Dragonball power up screamfest followed by a two minute fight. At the same time, no one's really getting stronger except New Worlder's. Powers and abilities are merely revealed at plot appropriate moments.

 **MadDan90:** Truth spoken and another chapter written. I must admit I had this one relatively complete before I posted the previous chapter, which is why it is up so darn fast. I have been dying to write this chapter and reveal Esther. Reading up on monsters of the New World and YGGDRASIL, I found the Mephistopheles and went ape shit! A Good demon? Hellz yes! SOLD!

 **Yoloith:** Thank you for the chance, and if I do see you again in the reviews, thank you again. If not, fair enough. I hope you find what you are seeking.

 **OverWarlord:** Ching* Like acquired.

 **Lew89:** Yeah, not enough numbers for the fliers to do a "blot out the sun" kind of thing. That's just unreasonable . . . lol.

 **Awayuki:** To answer your question. Yes. I come up with all the characters myself in addition to their relationships and interactions with all the others in the story that aren't already written in like the canon characters.

 **UndeadLord22:** I do not believe that you are alone in that sentiment sir. :P

 **Ilireanwri:** Welcome back. Here ya go.

 **RyuujiVantek:** When I can take the canon character and portray it right as the canon does or change him/her in a believable (most of the time) fashion, I am happy when readers get into it. Regardless of hating the character or loving it. They are still a part of the story whether we love to hate them, or hate to love them. XD

 **Dimension Distorter:** You might be pleasantly surprised . . .

 **Shellkira:** Hope this works for you for now.

 **Raging Cajun:** Welcome aboard!

 **Akuma-Heika:** Howdy, I haven't seen you around for a while now. Welcome back. I am glad that I was able to surprise you pleasantly with that tidbit from another reviewer's response. I wish I had more time to devote to language studies, but eh, I get by appreciating those who can speak it.

* * *

 **Alrighty dear readers! One more chapter and then we jump over to the Lizardman Arc with Ainz! I know, I know, some of you are grabbing the pitchforks and torches because I'm going over to Momonga's story which is well known to all of us by now.**

 **Yet I may surprise you. At least I hope I do in a manner that pleases many of you. From interactions in the past with many of you, it is nearly a majority that ask me if I would be changing Ainz's perspective. Well, this may do it for you to lay the ground work for the changes I felt would better Overlord.**

 **Once again, thank you all for your support and comments.**

 **Reis Nailo, signing off for now.**


	24. Chapter 22: Primordial - Leviathan

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress. This whole fight took nearly the whole chapter. Wooo!

* * *

 **Chapter 22: Primordial – Leviathan Oceanis**

* * *

Artorias should have been breathing hard and a bit panicked, yet she did feel that way. She was in full control of her faculties. She registered the Roble soldiers behind her in addition to Mordred and his NPC, Esther. Lancelot was guarding her from any random gout of hyper pressured water streams that Leviathan could shoot forth. This trial battle had been a wild ride to say the least. She had not imagined being taken all the way back to their home.

Stepping forward as she drew her panoply, she reflected for a moment on the fight up to this point . . .

* * *

 **Previously . . .**

* * *

Artorias had finished delivering her orders to everyone about the strategy for this fight. Leviathan burst from the watery depths and was accompanied by massive waterspouts. The watery tornadoes twisted and turned, creating deadly winds of clashing vectors and sloshing brutal waves of water all over the skies. Steering clear of these lethal pillars as they traversed the area around them, she caught sight of Gareth deftly darting through the maelstroms.

Lancelot rushed headlong at Leviathan, knowing full well his role in keeping the majority of Leviathan's attention. Raising his blade vertically before him in salute, he spun three-sixty with a mighty slash that connected with Leviathan in the muzzle. The great serpent reeled back in pain from the blow. Part of them was surprised when it shook its head and glared at Lancelot before blasting the Knight of the Round with a geyser from its maw.

"Lancelot!" Gareth cried as she circle about Leviathan.

The Knight burst from within the line attack and lashed out again with a cleaving vertical swath this time. Primordial that it was, Leviathan rippled its long, sinewy body knocked aside his attack with a whip crack like motion of his long torso section. Gareth made a mental note of that. Did it just parry a strike from Lancelot with its own body?

Changing her altitude slightly, she dropped several dozens of feet. Part of her was in awe of Leviathan's massive size. Easily over fifty meters, a full hundred meters even, it was so lithe and quick, you would never have guessed such a huge creature could move with such nimbleness. Her job in this fight was to wait for key moments to strike and as such, Lancelot would be taking quite a lot of punishment.

Undeterred by Leviathan's unusually skilled defense, Lancelot rose to its eye level and presented the flat of the sword to his opponent. The rest of the members either shielded their eyes or turned away as he made use of a weapon skill well known for its ability to garner the attention of enemies. A piercing, blinding light refracted off of the blade and Leviathan clenched its eyes shut as it roared in surprise.

[ _Blade Glint_ ] for melee fighters was widely considered useless in PvP unless your opponent was a complete dunce. It garnered aggro and hate in addition to inflicting the [ _Blindness_ ] negative status affliction for a certain period of time before being able to be reapplied with subsequent uses of the skill. However, the more one used it in rapid succession, the less and less effective the amount of time the affliction would last until the enemy was rendered immune the negative status ailment portion of the skill. The negative affect immunity would wear off after a certain period of time and be effective again, but by then, most fights were done and over with. Skilled wielders could make use of it at odd moments and so if you did not take measures against blindness, then you could easily find yourself on the receiving end of an embarrassing finish.

Gareth took full advantage of the sudden blinded nature of Leviathan and raised her halberd aloft as she urged her alicorn into full charge. Bracing her weapon before her like a ramrod, she grit her teeth and activated her own weapon skill. [ _Glorious Charge_ ]: A mounted version of [ _Sonic Thrust_ ] that had the ability to trample smaller foes under hooves. Dying from this attack was brutal as avatars tended to end up mangled messes of limbs and crushed faces. Against an opponent the size of Leviathan however, that would not happen.

Gareth collided with Leviathan's torso full force and the colossal methuselah dove back into the waters as Lucretia chased it with [ _Twin Maximize Magic: Dragon Lightning_ ]. The bright azure bolts of magical energy lanced through the air and thundered across the skies. As the water spouts faded and the waters below them on the surface seemed to calm for a moment, Lucretia grinned.

"I do believe that this self proclaimed primordial is truly on par with the mythical beasts and titanic beings you and your peers faced many years past Your Majesty."

 _Oh gee . . . you think so?!_ Gareth, Lancelot, and Artorias all thought as one. Then again, Lucretia was merely observing and commenting from her experiences as a historian for Avalon. She had never participated in such a grand battle versus something like a field boss category enemy. Sure, she had seen plenty of action as a commander during the guild wars, but this was a different kind of battle.

A beam of watery energy lanced out from the surface, nearly missing Maribelle and Claire. The next shot nearly hit the healer dead on if Claire had not interceded. Her shield angled to absorb as much of the attack as possible while still deflecting it away. The blond noblewoman grit her teeth and growled in exertion as the stream of magical waters slowly faded out. Her pegasus whinnied in annoyance at being soaked. Maribelle gripped her staff and her eyes took on a airy, magical glow.

[ _Death Watch_ ] was a spell that allowed the caster to monitor the Hit Point status of their party members even when out of field of vision. Claire's aura still shined bright. It shrank a sliver, her defenses and shield mitigating the majority of the damage when her ring increased her water resistance by a wide margin.

"[ _Triplet, Extend Magic: Communal Regeneration_ ]!" A emerald/teal glow surrounded all of them as the HoT or Heal Over Time spell took effect. With the spell active, they would recover four percent of their maximum Hit Points each second for sixty seconds. It may not have seemed much in fast paced battles, but it stacked with other spells like it . . . including itself. It also stacked with biological extraordinary abilities like Artorias and Draconis's [ _Fast Healing_ ] and certain pieces of equipment like Lancelot's [ _Surcoat of the Eternal Warrior_ ].

Against most Raid Bosses it was a must for party survival. Especially when many encounters past level 70 liked to have enemies that could kill you in a very limited number of attacks.

Claire glanced back over her shoulder in appreciation.

Lancelot methodically observed the surface of the ocean below them, trying to see if there were any obvious telegraphs to Leviathan's attacks and movements. Gareth flew around at a lower altitude than all of the, likely trying to bait an action out of the water lord. As she was the fastest out of all of them in the air, it was the logical decision for the time being.

Lucretia to his right was prepping another spell. He trusted her combat thinking and the members that had helped Gareth create her had been obsessively meticulous in her background and creation. Gareth's gift to her of that dual-tome spell book was no coincidence. If someone wanted to ask them who the strongest of all of Avalon's NPCs was, it was a unanimous "Lucretia Merces".

The Grandmaster Tactician of Avalon watched and waited patiently, they would have another opportunity to strike at Leviathan the next time he rose from the depths. Watching her liege closely as she acted as bait, she noticed a shift in the shade of the waters below her. Lifting her right hand high above her head, the pages of the left side of the spell book shuffled and flipped rapidly. Ultraviolet lightning crackled and sparked in her raised hand from the pages, shedding a violet hued light upon all in the vicinity.

"Ser Lancelot! Lady Gareth's five o'clock!"

The World Champion wasted no time in heeding her words and diving headlong in the direction. Gareth kept her course as her compatriot dove toward her at breakneck speed. Leviathan shot up from the surface right before Lancelot hit the water, he swung the ultra heavy blade hard and was rewarded with the methuselah shrieking and flailing in pain before slapping him away with a mighty flick of its tail. As the man was unwillingly making distance between himself and his adversary, Gareth Immelmann Turned back at the primordial and rushed it with another mounted charge. The halberd's tip scrapped off a wide swath of scales.

Reaching out as she passed, Gareth managed to catch one of the scales in her fist. A massive thing nearly too big for her hand to clasp fully, she stuffed it into one of her inventory slots via the dimensional [ _Infinity Haversack_ ]. Mentally wondering what it could be used to create should they get enough, she squashed her collector's instinct. Climbing for altitude, she saw her friend recover from his tail beating in the distance upon the water's surface.

Feeling a looming presence behind her, she pulled her reigns hard to the right, urging Shadow Star to evade. As Leviathan closed on her from behind, she marveled at how fast it was despite its size despite her danger. Her eyes registered the quadruple forked trail of ultraviolet lightning from Lucretia zinging back and forth like mad. The sound of ozone burning and a deafening crack of thunder met her ears as Leviathan suddenly dove back into the waters after she could practically taste the lightning spell Lucretia had just saved her with. A rain of sparks and residual arcane bolts crackled in the air for a moment before dying out.

[ _Twin Spell: Elderitch Thunderflare_ ] was one of a plethora of spells that Lucretia knew. A Tier VIII spell that acted as lightning did in its delivery, but was non-elemental in nature. The sparking explosion left behind was an AoE Damage over remained after the bolts hit their targets. Guarding it left you vulnerable to the DoT damage, so evading it was ideal. Yet for something as massive as Leviathan, it would be hard to dodge at all.

As she passed by Lucretia, she lifted her halberd in a grateful salute. The emerald tipped blond simply smiled. Another liquid attack shot from the ocean at them, but was intercepted by a bolt of lightning from Artorias's jagged magical blade. They made a mental note of that particular attack's appearance and form. It appeared that Tier VI level magic of the lightning element could nullify that attack.

Maelstroms wound up again and surrounded all of them on all sides before beginning to close in. Lancelot and Claire formed up below and above the group respectively before the Pegasus Knight lifted her lance high. The Knight of the Lake formed a magic glyph beneath his feet before stabbing the center of it with his blade. Two columns of light overlapped and engulfed them all as the watery twisters closed and overlapped on each other, forming an inescapable deluge of promised death for the denizens of the New World.

[ _Sacred Circle_ ] and [ _Knight's Vow_ ] combined their effects and shielded the group from physical harm while reducing magical damage. The party was buffeted by streams of magical water and severe tornado force winds. Out of one of the deluges Leviathan burst forth with a cacophonous roar before lunging at Artorias. From down below Lancelot shot skyward with a rising slash like that of a gale. The attack clipped the Lord of Tides on the jaw which adjusted its course just enough to fly by the Queen of Avalon. Taking the opportunity, Gareth and Artorias both let loose slashes that traveled down the length of the primordial serpent. Their weapons bit deep into its hide, leaving their marks as Leviathan began to bleed.

As their opponent retreated again to plan its next attack, Maribelle moved over to Lancelot in the skies. A frown of concern on her face. The man hefted his weapon a few times with a noticeable frown of his own.

"Ser Lancelot? Are you alright?"

"I am Lady Maribelle. Leviathan is much denser and heavier than I gave it credit. The [ _Blade of the Graviton Titan_ ] isn't performing well against it. This 'Primordial' is truly exceeding my expectations."

An eager grin crossed the man's features and Artorias took notice.

"Oh? The Knight of the Lake and World Champion is surprised by a challenge?"

Lancelot chuckled at the jab from his friend.

"I must admit my concerns from Ser Draconis's reports. Yet it seems like this world does yet have beings able to withstand us . . . challenge us even. Yes, let us best this trial with aplomb!"

The strongest Knight of Round brought down his sword with a swift, cutting swing that dropped him from the skies like a meteorite. Seemingly rising to meet his proclamation, Leviathan burst forth directly underneath them. The two collided at full speed and the force sent shockwaves in all directions. The group winced as the pulse hit them even from far above. Once Lancelot took true interest in a fight, good luck stopping the man.

"Follow his lead. Gareth, Lucretia, back him up. Maribelle be ready for any injuries. Claire, I will guard Maribelle for the moment. Go!"

Given permission to leave her charge, Claire nodded and rushed to follow Gareth as she darted toward the clashing Leviathan and Lancelot. The dean of the Magic Academy of Avalon sent magic to the two mounted knights and they could feel their physical power increase along with their speed. As they closed in, they could see that Leviathan had formed blades of magical water and was using them to clash with the 9th World Champion of YGGDRASIL. Clearly impressed and battle focused, Lancelot had locked eyes with Leviathan as they carried on with their oddly matched duel.

The flat of his weapon smashed one of the watery swords into harmless sprays of water, soaking the knight even more. Licking his lips, he could taste the salt and his eyes burned from the sea water, yet he could not help but revel in this feeling. Being alive, truly alive! The air, sea water, this massive being actually being strong enough to battle on equal terms! Even the pain from the salty water getting in his eyes did nothing to deter this feeling of adrenaline and euphoria.

Like Draconis, Lancelot had been maimed during the Arcology War. Even though he had not had it as badly as Draconis did, he understood the dread and helpless depression of such a life and the hardships that came with it. The game of YGGDRASIL did quite a lot for him like it did for his friend. Yet now . . . They really did have a second life now. There was no way he was going to waste it, yet finding out just how much stronger they were to the rest of the denizens had made him apprehensive. The appearance of Leviathan Oceanis . . . if he was being honest with himself . . . was a godsend. He did not want to slay these beings, but challenging them like this was joyous in his eyes.

Slipping to the side just a fraction, he let another blade of watery magic skim the shoulder pauldron on his left side before turning to fend off a second blade from his right side. From behind him, Gareth and Claire zoomed by on his left and right respectively. The two pegasus riders weaved between Leviathan's conjured blades, spinning polearms above their heads before slamming into its face with a synchronized [ _Glorious Charge_ ]. Gareth performed a quickened loop and came back through the exact same path with a charging slash that severed a chunk of whisker from its snout.

Capitalizing on that wound, Lancelot lashed out with a leaping slash that cut another gouge in the wound. As he followed through and pushed himself to the side in order to avoid a retaliatory attempt at a head butt, a flash of verdant emerald light passed through the air where he had just been, completely separating the whisker from the methuselah. He allowed himself a smirk at the small victory within this fight.

[ _Rexcaliber_ ] was one of the fastest flying attack spells in the game and had three different variations, though now that they were in a New World, he guessed many magic spells and their variations in usage depended on the creativity of the caster. A wind element spell, it did not have too terribly many weaknesses other than its lower than average power for a spell of its Tier.

He turned and nodded up to Lucretia, who he could see preparing another spell. It was one of her class abilities that allowed her to prepare spells while not casting them immediately. [ _Battle Magus_ ] allowed her to hold spells at the ready and use them as counters and interruptions. Normally spells of that nature were trap types, but she could use instant attack spells originating on herself. This meant that charging her was suicide as she could hit you with attack spells nearly instantly with few telegraphs while still setting normal trap spells like [ _Floating Master Mine_ ].

Giving his attention back to Leviathan, he whipped around the primordial beast to behind his form. Vaguely catching notice of Gareth grabbing the falling whisker and stowing it away he couldn't help but chuckle a little. She always had been loot crazy, no doubt wondering how item creation and materials would work in this world. They would have to talk to her about that afterwards. Even though Leviathan had subjected himself to this battle, there was a limit to what this battle allowed for.

Natural curiosity aside for now, he raised his Legendary Tier weapon aloft and brought the sword down. A blade shaped like that of a glaive slashed across the air in front of him in the same path as his swing and into Leviathan. The creature roared and turned its full attention on him, crimson eyes blazing in indignation. No blood came from the wound, but then again, it was not a physical damage dealing attack.

[ _Astral Saber_ ] was an attack that went straight after the MP of the target instead of the HP. Its damage dealt was a percentage of the victim's maximum MP based on the attack power of the user and the magical defenses of the target. However, Lancelot had used it so much that its properties had changed and instead went against physical defenses or magical defenses which ever was the lower of the two. It was one of the reasons that players in the game had nicknamed him with angry spite: Mage Slayer Lancelot.

"That got its attention . . ." he muttered as he created some distance with the [ _Fly_ ] spell. Spears of water and lightning mixed together swarmed around him in a spherical trap as pillars of maelstroms surrounded him on eight sides on the outer edge of the spears. He sweat dropped a bit and deadpanned. "Oh . . . great."

The lances shot in from all around him like a swarm of killer bees. Focusing on everything within his sword's reach, he set his defenses. Swirling around in a 720 degree spin, the [ _Blade of the Graviton Titan_ ] flashed and glinted in lethal arcs of white light. The arcs faded only to be replaced with crimson lines that followed the deadly arcs in an afterimage seconds after he had already lashed out. Six of these eliminated the spears surrounding him laterally from his knee level to his neck in a spectacular display of exploding water and scattering lightning.

[ _Counter Circular_ ] dealt no damage but performed attack interception including magical attacks. Of course, if the magical attack or physical attack had an AoE pattern, he would still get caught up in the explosion from the assault. Since these were all single target however, any that came into contact detonated harmlessly.

Fading back through the gap he created with an evasive skill, he allowed the rest of the spears to crash into each other from above and below like an hourglass before bracing himself and activating [ _Fortification_ ] and [ _Rampart_ ] to mitigate the damage he knew he was going to take from this towering spire of maelstroms surrounding him. As they all converged on his spot in a single point, the attacked merged into one vicious waterspout. Even with the ability to breath in water due to his equipment, the mass of bubbles and the density of the water reduced his vision to nothing. A chill ran down his spine as one of his class abilities went off.

[ _Epic Warrior's Instinct_ ] allowed him to "sense" attacks he could no see. While not like [ _Blindsense_ ] that Draconis had that would give him the location of things, it still helped warn him of dangers. The greater the chilling factor, the deadlier the attack. If he had to rate things on a scale of one to ten, then this felt like an eight. Not risking anything, he felt no shame at all in activating [ _Absolute Aegis_ ] which allowed any single attack to be reduced to nothing. It held a ludicrously long cooldown at ten minutes, but he didn't think he'd need it again if the others were around to help him. Being cut off from everyone like he was now though . . .

Leviathan slammed into him from above, diving straight through his own attack and driving the Knight into the murky depths of the sea with it.

 _Well . . . this isn't good._

Back above the waters, the towering pillars dissipated to reveal a very much missing Lancelot and Leviathan. Marbelle could still vaguely make out the Knight of Round's HP aura, but now he was submerged within the home territory of their opponent. Lucretia visibly cringed a bit as Artorias stared blankly at the area around them.

"Well . . . that isn't a good sign. Yet, charging in to assist him with this blade is not going to end well for anyone."

"A wise observation my Queen. Just as well, I will be refraining from lightning element strikes so long as allies are underwater with the Primordial."

Gareth and Claire rejoined them at their altitude, a look of concern on Beaumain's face told Artorias all she needed to know about what her friend thought about this situation. Waving her hand across the air in front of her, a magical circle materialized the the broad edges lined with weapon symbols. Releasing her lightning spell blade to the symbol, she reached inside of it and drew forth a different weapon. The blade formed in her hand as she withdrew her new selection in a coalescence of azure blue particles. Lucretia gazed at her in interest, the tactician/scholar was always intrigued by the unique magics their queen commanded.

[ _Arsenal of the Royal Armory_ ] allowed her to draw forth a pre-selected set of equipment. Unlike normal equipment switches which allowed for changing active equipment with things in a person's inventory, hers could be done during combat without delay. They could even strike from the aether itself on their own if it was set to [ _Arsenal Assault Mode_ ]. However it put a massive drain on her magical reserves to do so. Consuming MP at an astonishing rate per five seconds active. At most she could keep it active for a maximum of a minute. Even though during combat that could feel like an eternity at times, a large portion of her other skills and abilities would suffer or outright deactivate without MP in reserve.

Drawing forth weapons from this preset selection however, granted them temporary enchantment boosts ranging from increased critical rates and critical damage, to defense piercing and increasing her defenses. A kind of weapon dependent self buff skill. It was the reason she had capped out her Fighter and Master of Arms classes.

* * *

 **Battle of Leviathan Oceanis's [ _Sphere of Tidal Ruination_ ]**

 **\- BGM of Awesome – Final Fantasy XV OST: Stand Your Ground**

* * *

 **. . . Play? . . .**

* * *

"Come to me. [ _Vivienne's Tear_ ]." The sword answered her calling, its hilt resting gladly in her hand before drawing forth smooth as silk from a beauteous scabbard. The container of the blade attached to her left forearm like a shield with the opening facing her hand. A broad bladed, sword forged from Living Blue Soul prismatic ore, water elemental crystals, ten ignots of level 70 Solarian True Steel, and the blessings of the Lady of the Lake herself, the blade behaved more like a katana than it appeared as a broad sword. Fluted down the center and pulsing with the blessing of the Lady, she hoped that this would make helping Lancelot a bit easier.

"I'm going. Stay with us above the surface. Gareth, if you get the chance, don't hesitate."

Her friend nodded firmly. This was a rare situation, a water battle was quite uncommon and as such, there were not a lot of skills to deal with it. On the off chance, Gareth had learned a peculiar skill which she almost never used, but now it was about to pay off.

To be honest, the majority of them considered the weapon skill a garbage throw away that she could not expunge from her list to make way for a different weapon skill. Funny how things worked out sometimes.

"I won't dear friend. Be careful."

Artorias nodded in return before shooting down toward the waters. She could feel Lancelot's presence vaguely and Leviathan's was a giant shade of darkened water around where she could feel him. Holding her blade out before her like a pike, she began to spin, building up centrifugal force. The watery blade enveloped her along with the wind generated by her spiraling descent, turning her into a micro water twister as she slammed into the surface of the ocean.

Water parted violently and since the ocean surface did not count as a target, she kept going. Reaching her goal, Leviathan arced its head back in surprise to look at her. It had not expected such a strike to come from above with enough force to blast aside the waters in the immediate area. Fully exposed, the methuselah lashed out with tail and lances of electrified water.

Tail slam met [ _Spiral Descent_ ] and Artorias was sent rebounding after leaving a puncture wound a few inches across and half the blade's length. As she was flung back, she sheathed the sword, interjecting the sheath on her arm as a shield against several lances from multiple directions as she corkscrewed in the exposed air. The sparks tingled her senses and slightly numbed her left arm before lashing out with the blade released from the scabbard in an iaijutsu styled slash that caught the final three lances, shattering their forms in spherical bursts of moisture.

At the edge of the parted waters, Lancelot burst forth with a battle cry. Reading his intent, Artorias charged in as well, hoping to catch the colossal serpent in a pincer strike. Leviathan was not a Primordial without a reason however. Bullets of hyper pressured water sprayed over the two of them like shotgun blasts from above, forcing the two to slow and evade or get tagged. The veritable bullet hell was accompanied by ring shaped lightning pulses. Lancelot had a feeling that if they tried to speed through them, they would explode or constrict, so he remained evasive. Artorias opted to shoot skyward again as the waters closed from their unusual separation.

Her flight skyward was stopped however, when she felt something latch onto her foot and halt her where she was. Looking down, she saw that some kind of liquid chain held her within Leviathan's reach. The massive keeper of their trial crashed down on her with a full fledged body blow. Bringing the sheath/shield up again she activated defensive skills to brace herself.

"Artorias!" Lancelot called to her as he saw her take the hit full on. He had been caught by the chains as well. Another pair of ultraviolet lightning shot through their opponent as Lucretia fired off her non-element spell. Artorias plunged into the murky depths as the water finally crashed back down upon them. Being submerged again, Lancelot could see Artorias hacking at the chain that still bound her. Raising his blade up before swinging down, he struck his own chain, cracking the magical liquid a fair amount, yet not breaking it entirely. He repeated the process, cursing the fact that the only player in their guild that had specialized in sundering and breaking hadn't come to the New World with them.

Now in Leviathan's element yet again, they were dragged deeper underwater. The two grit their teeth and squinted as their enchanted eyes from the [ _Communal Darkvision_ ] spell reverted their sight to black and white. The chains loosened and released them. This gave her the chance to swim to Lancelot's position. Nodding once to him as he registered her in front of him, he returned the gesture and they went back to back. They could vaguely feel the Lord of Tides stalking them in the currents that swirled about, but there was no telling exactly where he was and if one current was a magically induced feint or truly the methuselah itself.

The two members of Avalon glanced about in wary caution. Even with the black and white vision, the natural darkness underwater made it nearly impossible to pinpoint Leviathan much less up or down left or right. Their wild ride down had disoriented both of them. Bubbles entered their vision and floated upwards. Each of them traced their path for a split second before realizing what that forebode.

Instantly their attention turned below them, but it was too late. A giant open maw with hundreds, perhaps thousands of razor sharp fangs and shark like teeth met their eyes. At the center of it was was a swirling mass of magical energy.

It was mere feet from both of them.

Lancelot shoved Artorias "behind" him as he brought his sword up to defend himself even as he used his own body as a shield for her. Artorias placed a trusting hand on his shoulder before activating a buffing effect that engulfed them both as she braced. The two of them glowed slightly as an ephemeral shield embraced both of them from in front of the World Champion.

Leviathan's attack fired and they saw white.

* * *

 **Above the Waters**

* * *

Lucretia cursed their predicament. Being separated from the Queen and Ser Lancelot was worrisome. Lady Maribelle insisted that they were both still alive and she trusted the sister of the Church for her sacred sense of life for her party, but it didn't stop the aggravation. She should have seen this scenario. While Lady Claire worried, their shared liege in Gareth merely stared at the waters stoically.

Hovering in place, she held her halberd at the ready. Her eyes were focused, shifting ever so slightly left, right, up, and down as she scanned the waters below for any sign of either their party members or Leviathan. She had instructed Claire to be ready to recover both the Queen of Knights and the World Champion at a moment's notice. The Supreme Commander of Avalon's Aerial Knights would run interference while Maribelle healed whatever wounds they had suffered.

Bubbling surges from the surface forewarned them of something brewing down below. Maribelle gasped and immediately began to ready one of her more potent healing spells if the glowing aura she took on was any indication.

Wasting no time at all, Gareth shot forth like a harpoon. A massive geyser erupted from the depths and from it flew the forms of Avalon's Queen and Ser Lancelot. Claire blitzed forward to gather them up as Lucretia wound up a fiery conflagration in both her hands, her spell book floating in the air above her as it spun clockwise, a giant magic glyph formed around her on all sides as a cube. Smaller magic circles jutted out from the four corners in triplicate. From the final of each of those orbiting rings of runes traversed around her like miniature satellites. Maribelle looked to her friend's spell book to see that the only the left half was still open and the right half of the tome remained sealed shut. Her mouth fell open in fear and awe at the display.

The Grandmaster Tactician was charging a Super Tier spell.

Gareth reached her mark in the blink of an eye, piercing water like rice paper and puncturing her goal with a furious battle cry. The roar of pain from Leviathan Oceanis was guiltily satisfying after seeing her friends launched like that. Reversing her momentum, she urged Shadow Star skyward again as they shot up and out of the seas to rejoin their comrades. She did not even bother checking to see where she landed her blow as they cleared the surface.

[ _Kingfisher_ ] was the heretofore "useless" polearm skill that could only be used on a single submerged target. It ignored barriers and shields completely if they were a seaborne creature and dealt quadruple damage if performed from a height greater than five hundred feet. This was the first time she had ever used the weapon skill in ten whole years since she had learned it back at level 70.

There was no time for her to exult in her strike much less check on her allies when she cleared the water's surface. Her eyes landed on the massive glow of a Super Tier spell's magical telegraphed glyph and immediately snapped her reigns hard, forcing Shadow Star to hoof it away from the impending blast zone.

Lady Claire held fast to Lancelot's forearm as he gripped hers in turn. Artorias clung to her knight like a lifeline. Both of them were groggy and disoriented from the turbulent assault that had pushed them from the depths of the ocean below into the skies above in hardly no time.

"My Queen!" Maribelle rushed over to them and laid hands on each of them. Her eyes registered their damage and it frightened her. Lancelot had clearly shielded her the best he could yet they both still had dropped below half their vitality. Lancelot remained just under half, but he was sturdier and had a higher fortitude. Artorias groaned with her disorientation. Even though both of the auras were regaining strength due to her earlier healing buff, Artorias was down to around forty percent, but regaining life force quickly due in part both to her spell and her own regenerative ability as an Awoken Dragon Blooded.

"[ _Panacea_ ]. [ _Breath of Life_ ]." The two spells washed over her charges and had immediate affect. Artorias shook her head hard and clicked her tongue in annoyance. Lancelot's vision cleared and he took a moment to look over Artorias to ensure she was alright. Maribelle's first spell cured their addled minds and sluggish waterlogged bodies. The second healed massive amounts of their vitality, restoring a set percentage of the target's maximum Hit Points. Though not fully healed, they were now back to above around eighty percent of their vitality in her eyes.

"My thanks Sister Maribelle." Lancelot smiled at her and she blushed a bit. Artorias nodded in agreement before looking to her queendom's tactician. It didn't really surprise her to see the woman charging a Super Tier spell and she knew which one this was. Silently wondering just how much vitality Leviathan had, she knew that they were fighting at a technical disadvantage numbers wise.

The Primordial was proving to be every bit the Field Raid Boss as they had feared. If this truly followed the models in any sort of accuracy, then they needed at least another full strike team of six level 100's to fight him to utter defeat. She silently hoped that this wasn't one of those trials that required you to fully defeat your opposition. Even though they hadn't been unleashing their trump cards and strongest capstone skills, there had not exactly been using low baller techniques either.

Lucretia took a tentative glance at Artorias and the Queen nodded as she stowed [ _Vivienne's Tear_ ] and brought [ _Skyward Mirrorblade of Rending_ ] back to her hand.

The runes shined bright as she brought her hands down, the flames launched from her fingertips as Leviathan revealed itself with another charging blast of geyser force destruction. Her attack was slightly slow, with the sea serpent of old launching its attack just before it reached. The group braced themselves as the two magical assaults struck each other. The softball sized flame erupted and a volcanic eruption of fire, brimstone, fiery hail, and ash formed a mushroom cloud of death. Their group used Lucretia's [ _Battlefield Warp_ ] to gain distance from the Super Tier spell. Leviathan, not realizing the potency of the tiny looking spell, was caught up in the explosion. The serpent's own attack mitigated much of the blast, but not enough to save it from getting partially engulfed.

The might of Super Tier spell [ _Muspelheim_ ] did its work. The ocean waters crackled and hissed in angry fury as the ultra hot flames and cinders hit the surface. Steam rose in waves of super heated promises of pain and agony to those caught up in it who were not immune to high temperatures. The changes in the air formed sparks of lightning and thunder echoed though the skies. The explosion itself covered more than two football stadiums long and wide in pure, unstoppable fire damage.

Gareth met up with them from above as she had managed to get out of the area of effect with fast flying and her understanding of how Lucretia's spells worked. She whistled as she took in the sight.

"This is why magic casters are frightening."

"It's also why Super Tier spells are not capable of being rapid fired."

As the effects of the clash of powers faded, they could begin to make out the silhouette of the Lord of Tides beyond the smoke and steam. A single crimson eye glared at them. Slightly confused for a moment, they slightly cringed at the sight of the colossal methuselah missing one of its eyes. Massive gouts of blood dripped from closed eye lids.

Gareth gripped her weapon apprehensively, wondering if it was gong to personally target her now for the wound inflicted by her weapon skill.

" _ **Thine might is beyond mortal measure. Thou dost wage war as mine own brethren. Mine current efforts are not enough. Very well. This one shall cease holding back."**_

Its words made them all tense. Stop holding back?! Artorias instinctively activated her stronger buffs for everyone in her party as Leviathan summoned maelstroms around a central pillar that formed a spherical chamber in which it disappeared into.

"Holding back? Oh gods . . ."

Maribelle's apprehensive words resonated with the rest of them, but Lancelot sighed and readied himself. It seemed like this fight was playing out in phases that lapsed by vitality markers. Artorias and the others seemed to realize this as well and Maribelle and Lucretia applied refreshed buffs and others spells. The knights too, activated personal skills and abilities that they had been holding back.

[ _Greater Strength_ ], [ _Twin Maximize Magic: Force Shield_ ], [ _Guardian's Aura_ ], [ _Epic Energy Resistance: Water_ ], [ _Greater Agility_ ], [ _Greater Evasion_ ], [ _Epic Energy Resistance: Lightning_ ], [ _Enhanced Alertness_ ], [ _Body_ _of Effulgent Beryl_ ], [ _Honor Guard of the Queen_ ], [ _Blessings of Fervor_ ], [ _Haste_ ], [ _Contingency Spell – Triplet Maximize Magic: Explosive Runes_ ], [ _Greater Communal Regeneration_ ], [ _Contingency Spell – Swift Cast: Re-Raise_ ], [ _Contingency Spell – Hourglass of the Eternal March_ ], [ _Fortify Armor_ ], [ _Mighty Guard_ ], [ _Indomitability_ ], [ _Knightly Valor_ ], [ _Storm Rider_ ], [ _Queen's Glory: Everlasting Fortifications_ ].

The group slung spells across their group in a seemingly criss crossed pattern, yet their timings balanced out to maximize the amount of time they would all remain active. Other spells were also cast and abilities activated. Yet it was Artorias's capstone skill of her Heroine class that clenched it.

[ _Queen's Glory: Everlasting Fortifications_ ] doubled the durations of all buffs and made certain ones immune to dispelling.

Leviathan's voice echoed from within its sphere.

" _ **So you had not unveiled thine true power. Very interesting. Now COME!"**_

The spherical cage crackled and a vortex sucked them into the enclosure faster than they could react.

Once inside they looked around in genuine awe. The sphere did not do justice to the actual size inside the watery cage. No, this was a wholly different dimension! As winds and rain and squalls pounded the area around them, there was no water submerging them. Chunks of land mass acting as floating islets were scattered about the entire area above, below, and around.

Lightning clashed in random intervals across the outer edges, the thunder echoing with fierce volume. At the center of it all was Leviathan, is eye now healed and regenerated. That was telling and not in a good way. Gareth winced as she clenched her jaw.

"Damn, looks like it healed somehow."

Lancelot took up his battle stance upon one of the islets. The others took up positions upon other islets nearby or in Gareth and Claire's case, in the air within the cage they now found themselves in. This would be a fight that was inescapable. Lucretia had heard tales of these kinds of fights. Ones were ancient powers that even she did not comprehend prevented escape via magic in a manner similar to [ _Dimension Anchor_ ]. This was triumph or die.

Realizing its power far exceeded anything she had ever faced during the guild wars, she released the locks on the right half of her spell book. Artorias took note of this action and motioned to Gareth with a hand gesture. Gareth looked over to see her NPC unlock the other half of her spell book and sighed.

"Lucretia, nothing past the halfway marker of that side of the tome."

The Grandmaster understood and nodded even as circular runes wrapped around her in a bubble. Lancelot noticed subtle movement from Leviathan and lunged forward as he swung his sword, intercepting a sudden stream of high pressurized water. Landing on another islet, he did not bother to look back as he set himself firmly. His focused completely different from before with this latest development.

"Enough chat! Ready yourselves!"

Lightning crashed from the edges of the sphere, forcing everyone to dodge and evade or become magical lightning rods. The thunder was utterly deafening inside the containment field the Primordial set up. The World Champion rushed in, trying to get a strike in but was intercepted by the tail fins of the sea serpent of old. Rebuffed, he cartwheeled backwards before stabbing his sword into a hunk of solid land and glaring at the parrying tail in offense as he dangled.

Off to his left Artorias unleashed another lightning strike from her blade and it rippled over their opposition with little effect if there was any. The dragon blooded queen swatted an errant bolt of lightning away with the jagged sword before leaping to the side as Leviathan slammed his tail into the islet she was on, shaking it violently, but not quite shattering the tiny land mass. A pair of massive boulders slammed into the creature from below and Maribelle had finally gone on the offensive with earthen spells now that land masses were involved. Chunks of debris flew about from the projectiles and floated about or were zapped by lightning if they managed to reach the outer area of the cage.

" _ **Nuisance."**_

The tone of contempt was apparent as it launched aqueous spears at the sister of the Church. Claire dove in front of the priestess, shielding her with twirling lance and adroit shifts in armor to let the two that managed to get by her weapon weaving glance harmlessly off her armor. Raising her weapon behind her, she retaliated with a fierce throw. [ _Sonic Javelin_ ] traveled the speed of sound and smashed into Leviathan's side, making the elder creature roar in displeasure.

Gareth scooped up the weapon as it fell from the wound it created, wielding polearm in each hand, she spurred Shadow Star on, galloping up Leviathan, she dragged the sharp tips of Claire's lance and her own halberd across its back. A ferocious bucking motion dislodged her from its body, but she persisted. Forcing Shadow Star to plunge back down at Leviathan, she spiraled with both weapons pointed forward. [ _Spiral Descent_ ] struck clean across one of its massive fins, gouging out a pair of twisting, turning troughs as she sped by. Claire formed up on her liege lady and had her weapon tossed back to her as they parted just in time to narrowly dodge a beam of watery magic.

Yet as they banked and angled away from each other, the beams defied the norm and curved, chasing the two women throughout the spherical air zone. Regardless of the maneuvers the two pulled, the beams closed in steadily. A bolt of lightning from Lucretia dispelled the beam chasing Claire, but Gareth flew straight to Lancelot, who was still hanging from the islet he got parried to. Their eyes met and he nodded as he pushed off the islet with phenomenal force. Gareth whistle and twisted in her saddle, Shadow Star drew her wings in and plummeted from the air she occupied. The Knight of the Round shot through the air they had just dropped from and swung his blade at the offending beam. The attack split in two and smashed into the islet behind him, sending chunks all about.

Gareth plummeted while aerial rolling several meters before Shadow Star redeployed her wings and leveled out. Claire rejoined her wing woman and they climbed for altitude again. As they did so, Lucretia could be seen firing another set of [ _Elderitch Thunderflare_ ]. This time, the electrical explosions practically clung to the methuselah, angering him to no end at the constant reminders. The tome using spell caster noticed a massive build up of magical energy around her and back stepped as she left runes in the air. A bubble of water materialized around her and she could feel the corruption within it that acted as a kind of poison. With a mental command, she detonated the runes around her, forcefully escaping the trap. The action was not without consequence though as she took damage from the runes proximity. A breeze of veridian energy refreshed her almost immediately as Maribelle flew by to get away from a pair of lances chasing her.

Halting beside her sovereign, Maribelle was saved from the attack by Artorias's shielding aura. She took a bit of splash damage, but did not feel as if the injuries were dire. The Queen of Knights launched another bolt from her weapon, aiming at Leviathan's previously injured eye. A bit of a cheap shot, but she was hedging her bets on making the methuselah flinch.

Her efforts were not unrewarded as the ancient aquatic being did rear back, exposing its neck and underbelly to Lancelot, who was rushing toward it in a zig zag pattern from islet to islet. Landing on the softer under side of the trial giver, he unleashed [ _Lateral Cleaver_ ] The horizontal blow ripped into hide and flesh alike. The previous damage from before not being completely healed, improved the damage of the weapon skill. Leaping upward, he spun in a seven-twenty spin using [ _Double Aerial Circle_ ]. The attack elicited a roar from the creature and another crash of lightning shot across the various spaces within the watery sphere dimension.

Claire shrieked in agony and her mount whinnied in pain before veering off and away from Gareth. The skyward knight circled around, making use of the islets as cover as she arced around, looking for another opportunity to strike. Claire tried her best to do the same from a different angle. The regeneration spells steadily did their job, but the frequency of the lightning was noticeably shortening.

Lancelot had narrowly avoided the lightning strikes as flew off to another islet. Maribelle had taken refuge beside the Queen and launched a second set of earthen projectiles toward their opposition. Artorias was examining their surroundings, watching the timing of the lightning, the patterns of the beams of water that she and Lucretia intercepted to protect Gareth and Claire. Those were becoming swifter and more numerous each time they materialized.

Suddenly, Leviathan uncoiled and rushed around the sphere in orbital patterns that smashed through a few of the islets. The group scrambled to get out of the way. Lancelot and Gareth made hit and run passes, effectively playing "chicken" with the colossal Primordial. Lucretia unleashed a salvo of four [ _Twin Maximize Magic: Chain Dragon Lightnings_ ], two of which were intercepted by the lightning from the arena like structure. The other two landed solidly, making the serpentine creature writhe and growl in irritation.

"Maribelle, ready yourself, I believe it is about to unleash something similar to what he struck Lancelot and me with."

The woman's eyes widened in horror and she began to chant softly in prayer. Leviathan disappeared from the sphere, swimming through the omni directional barrier. Artorias struck her sword into the islet she stood upon.

"Form up on me!"

The group did so quickly as she erected a lattice work of runic wards around them all. The defensive structure glowed and moved in systematic lines like a scrolling advertisement bar. Arching pillars of waterspouts shot through the area around them from above, below, right, and left and from oblong angles as well. Through them, Leviathan barreled through, all the while unleashing rays of deadly hyper pressured water. The jets of liquid split islets clean through like butter. Two of them crashed into the barrier and the runes flared before returning the favor and emitting beams of pure arcane power back at the mighty Lord of Tides.

Three more struck the barrier and the runes began to crack and fissure. Artorias looked to Gareth and Lancelot and the two Knights of the Round nodded. As the barrier cracked and began to give out, Maribelle found herself on the saddle of Gareth behind her.

"Hold on!" Gareth hollered as the magical defenses gave out and she shot upwards in a wide ascending barrel roll. The beams of deadly energy still flew about as Leviathan exited the area again. Lancelot and Artorias dodged and sidestepped what they could and tanked hits when they could not evade. Lucretia simply teleported around even though she could not teleport out. Claire caught up with them, keeping pace despite the slowly recovering injuries she had taken.

Leviathan returned from outside the sphere and once again took up its position at the center of everything.

" _ **Thou art exceedingly formidable. Thou hast faced beings beyond mortal measure before now. This one senses it. Keep up now."**_

The sphere opened up and Leviathan charged out, creating a vortex of suction that they could not fight. Drawn into the swirling tunnel, they found themselves dodging and avoiding obstacles that swarmed the tunnel they now flew through. In the distance they could see Leviathan swimming at incredible speeds. The group flew through the debris littered tunnels, keeping an eye on their mark all the while. Pieces of coral reef, sheet rock, and shale assaulted them.

" _ **Hmph, well done. Now . . ."**_

As quickly as they caught up with Leviathan, he had come to a complete stop and they halted within fifty meters of the ancient creature. It roared again and launched skyward. Bright sunlight temporarily blinded them as they felt the wind yet again. However, something felt different, the winds and aura that surrounded Artorias told her she was home. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw Pendragon Castle. Claire, Gareth, and Maribelle flew a strike pattern past Leviathan and Lancelot had landed below. Following suite, she wondered where Lucretia had disappeared to, but caught a glimpse of the woman high above, a frown on her features.

She landed behind her trusted knight.

* * *

 **Now . . .**

* * *

This was it. She drew [ _Excalibur Zeta_ ]. The blinding light of the sacred sword blinded those not used to its brilliance. The sword's blade glistened with sylvan writing and thrummed with energy. Now that she was upon her new homeland, she could not allow this fight to continue. The collateral damage to her people, and by extension those on the nearby mainland who had no part in this squabble directly would be at terrible risk.

The sword glowed with power, runes formed around the hilt and the first third of the blade from the cross guard. They spiraled around the weapon slowly, staying with it as she readied it for combat for the first time in months.

When drawn for the sake of the people of her home, the sword unleashed its true powers. Normally a holy sword able to fell demons and other fell beings, it was a sword of victory. In the name of her people, it granted her a number of boons, but its scabbard was her true prize. Avalon, named after the very guild they created, or perhaps it was actually the other way around. The embodiment of a protective housing that sheltered incredible powers and kept them safe. A place to heal wounds and rest from the wear of the battlefield. That was Avalon.

Leviathan Oceanis stared at the tiny woman. The Dragon Blooded Queen was so very tiny by comparison it thought it ironically amusing. Such a powerful will and spirit backed by equally powerful and loyal comrades. Yet they shared concerns for those around them. These were indeed different from the very rabble that now stared at them in disbelief and consternation. The sword now in her hands exceeded anything that it had seen up to this point. It knew that should she swing that sword that catastrophic tings would occur for them both. Yet for the sake of her people, she would do so. The methuselah nodded slowly.

" _ **Never before have the children of man proven themselves to have such mighty powers in tandem with such conscious behavior for their surroundings. Little Queen of Knights. Artorias Faye Pendragon. Thou hast passed this trial."**_

At her slight frown of concern, it huffed in amusement. It would regenerate from its wounds and be back at full power within the moon cycle. This fight was never to be to the death, but it did bring a large amount of its power to bear and it had not been enough to destroy these knights and magic casters of her Queendom.

" _ **Such a brilliant blade need not be swung in a battle such as this. Spare its might as you have been for a time which it is worthy of being unleashed. As agreed, this one shall depart for other waters for the time being. I wish you fortune in your endeavors with the people of the mainland. Thou may need it."**_

Leviathan dove back into the waters and swam away. Gareth and Claire landed close to her and Maribelle dismounted, her legs wobbly. Lancelot sheathed his weapon and sighed. This had definitely been a longer fight that anticipated. The group turned to Mordred and the man nodded respectfully. Esther smiled and bowed as well.

They were about to share what happened with Leviathan when rushing footfalls drew their attention. Artorias knew the feeling of killing intent by now, but seeing as Mordred had not even drawn his blade, she merely kept her buffs and passive defenses active. She had a feeling of what was about to happen anyway. If this person had not learned by Esther or Mordred or the Judge with them by now, then there really wasn't much she could do by this point other than let the attacker dig their own grave.

To her surprise, Maribelle stepped in and blocked Remedios's sword from hitting Artorias. The healer's normally gentle expressions and slight apprehension dissolved into one of indignation and anger. Gareth whistled loudly in awe.

"What by the gods do you believe you're doing attacking our sovereign like this?! The last the people knew of regicide, the penalty is death! I know of few nations that would allow such a thing to pass without incredible reason."

Remedios snarled in fury. First Neia Baraja somehow finds favor with this Knight of Rounds, then that demoness professed to be more righteous than her, and now a mere cleric manages to block her attack? What the damned hell was going on?

Up above them Lucretia frowned upon this paladin who dared raise blade against Avalon's Queen. Especially one with the gall to attack after seeing an obviously significantly stronger being leave after clashing with them. What fool would think that they would get away with such an act?

Her fury was distracted however when she noticed a portal open up _within_ the castle walls. Concerned with who could be performing such magic, she teleported to it.

"Who would have the ability to . . .? Oh gods, Cecilia?!"

Her compatriot tactician and wife of Crozwell von Houten stumbled out of the portal amidst what looked to be refugees and villagers. She could see militia men and women and soldiers and knights of Draconis's order. Yet it was Cecilia's state that sent dread through her.

She was battered and wounded. Her once fine armor and clothes were torn and slashed. Clear signs of heavy combat and not of a winning side. Her troops looked the same as she did, worn and harshly dealt with. What happened to reduce her fellow tactical mind to such a state?

"Ugh . . . kuh! Merces? Lucretia? Thank the gods . . . I managed to get everyone here."

She looked about more closely and paled. Akame and Kurome were here and the two were hugging each other and crying. Something she had never seen them do. Where were the others?

"Samael and the others went back to fortify The Lair." Cecilia cringed and tried to muster a healing spell, but nearly passed out trying. She began to weep. "I'm sorry. I'm not strong enough."

"What do you mean Cecilia? Speak to me!" Her friend passed out crying. Kneeling down beside her, she checked the wounded woman's pulse and sighed in relief to find it steady. "Damn it all. At a time like this?"

"My apologies. I can explain everything."

Lucretia turned to see a teal haired dragoness. Her armor was cracked and her helm split. She was being supported by one of the Knights on duty.

"What happened? Where is Lord Brightblade?"

Lucia Ignis Thundercry shook her head.

"I don't know. Where is Artorias Pendragon? She has to know."

* * *

 **Okay, so yeah, cliffhanger. DON'T KILL ME YET.**

 **I've had this in the works for a while. Ainz's interactions with the Lizardmen is next and when the real changes begin to set in.**

 **Keep in mind a few things real quick about this ending to this chapter. The military mobilization of any nation takes TIME. Everything in this past few chapters is implied to take several days up to a week or two. So Draconis's chapters in the upcoming future will be pretty much during the build of of Remedios's forces, ultimately culminating in whatever happened to get to this sudden dire appearance of Cecilia back in her homeland, but with very bad tidings.**

 **Did this fight with Leviathan Oceanis seem overboard? Lackluster? You all tell me. Thank you all for the reviews and reading!**

 **Without further ado.**

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses**

* * *

 **Solarblaster:** Thanks for the review and I'm glad you like seeing that this Primordial is up to facing our YGGDRASIL natives.

 **Bone Boy:** Essentially. A lot of it is actually born from a multitude of poor character and intentional ignorance coupled by arrogance.

 **MadDan90:** Hope the thing info I sent your way helps. The meeting WILL happen, but it might be a few chapters more.

 **Thristan:** The nicest thing for Momonga does for who? Context plz.

 **Loki98065:** Heh, well . . . I did it again . . . The next chapter won't be a cliffhanger.

 **Undead Lord 22:** For Draconis's portion, I'd say a few chapters. Really and truly the Lizardman Arc should not take me more than two, maybe three chapters at most to finish. As much as I do like their arc of the storyline, there really isn't that much going on for them other than their encounter with godlike being Ainz and Cocytus. Though there WILL be changes.

 **Ilireanwri:** I'm very happy to see that you like what I did so far with Leviathan. Thank you for dropping by again!

 **RyuujiVantek:** Oh you'll see. Heh heh eh.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Have you been looking at my notes? Joke. If anyone paid good attention to my earlier chapters, this bit should be obvious. The real treat is reading the how and why and such.

 **Raging Cajun:** To be fair, I do need to give Ainz SOME kind of screen time. I did want to make changes here and there and that means he will need to make his appearance for some chapters. The same goes for several members of the Nazarick cast.

 **Guest:** Good reader. Nice paying attention. I hope to not disappoint in that regard.

 **Akuma-Heika:** I'm sorry to hear that. If my writing helps get you out of your depression, I hope you enjoy it. My father suffers from it as well and takes quite a number of meds for it. It does help him, but being around caring people works wonders.

 **Dimensional Distorter:** Yeah, the whole Lizardman Arc baffled me in the LN. I mean, they're just there and Ainz is really playing up a douche villain during it despite hilarity with Shalltear and Cocytus actually having more development than Demiurge. Then again a lot of that has to do with warrior passion and pride.

 **Saliaskonstant:** My apologies if it did come off as a bit 'meh' for you. The fact that she wasn't being serious until right at the end and still didn't raise a finger to Remedios was kind of the point of how outclassed she is. Though when I went back and looked at it, it really was just a set up for what happens when we come back to Avalon again. I hope the Leviathan fight in this chapter was more satisfying to read through.

 **R.E.W. 4:** I'm not really holding my breath with Season 3. Especially now that Kugane-san is going on hiatus and we won't see Volume 14 for another full year or possibly more. Now, Tanya the Evil on the other hand . . . where's Season 2 dammit?!

* * *

 **OKAY, to this person. Reader . . . let's go with that.**

* * *

 **Rmarcano321:** You apparently blitzed through all of the chapters of The Exiled within a single morning according to the rate in which you left a review on EVERY chapter. I don't know whether to be impressed or a bit weirded out . . . hmmm . . .

I mean really. I got notifications of reviews within an hour of each other. Sometimes not even a full thirty minutes. It shows in your review of EVERY chapter.

Anyway! I do appreciate you reading through The Exiled, but stating a random fact in each review, especially when a lot of them are things that a good fair number of the reader base understand already kind of makes a significant portion of it redundant. Not to mention a lot of the info you are posting is straight out of the wikia page. Which much of it is speculation and a disturbing amount of it makes no hard defining line of what is and is not WN or LN. As I have stated in the past, the WN content is not canon and thus, much of it is not used in my fic. A select portion is used when there is nothing else to fill gaps in areas not even touched by the LN.

Mordred and Gareth's races were specified in Chapter 8 in their respective Character Profiles at the end of the chapter.

No actually many people actually don't know anything about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round. As much as I enjoyed reading through the renditions and the anime call outs, especially Fate/Stay Night which is actually pretty spot on to much of the details of legendary figures and myths, I don't see King Arthur and his knights as people to look up to. Rather people to watch out for. King Arthur was grossly paranoid and incompetent, killing his sons and other crippling failings.

Lancelot is his own nightmare as is the lecher that is Merlin and other figures throughout. Gareth is dishonest and Gawain is too prideful and vain. I read through iterations and saw a cautionary tale. Not a heroic one. That is in no way saying that they did not have moments that we should aspire to, but overall, it's a train wreck of tragedies by their own doing.

Binge reading is not healthy and you have obviously missed some details that would have answered a few of your questions already. Not to mention dealt with facts that you seem to like to point out that are pretty well known already by many of the readers and fans of this series.

Why did I do all of this? Make Draconis? Make my Original Characters? What order am I going through? All of these were mentioned and explained in my repeated notes and disclaimers and reviewer responses at the beginning and endings of chapters. I will not beat a dead horse to try and make glue.

* * *

 **Thank you all for your reviews and continued support in reading. For all you readers out there. Have a great weekend.**


	25. Chapter 23: Expansion Begins

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimers:** The usual rabble. Kugane owns it and YenPress licenses the translated hard copies of the Light Novel. Much of the following chapters may or may not skim over a few sections of the whole Lizardman Arc with exceptions in certain moments of the storyline until it diverges far from the canon content in one way or another.

A fair number of people are at least SOMEWHAT aware of everything Ainz as Momon with Nabe and the rest of Nazarick has done in the New World up to this point. It is effectively THE FIRST SEASON of the Anime rendition and IS the first Three Volumes of the Light Novel at an approximate word count of 240k based on number of pages in a volume compared to the average number of words in a typical novel of fiction off of a retail bookshelf.

Granted, take that estimated number of words with some salt as it is a general guess, not counting illustration pages and Character Profile pages, along with author notes at the end of his volumes. Much less font size and type of font used in the publishing. The indentations for the paragraphs and dimensions of the hard cover books themselves also count toward affecting the accurate "word count".

I didn't even realize this until I did a comparison with my own word count including the latest chapter of the Exiled just out of curiosity as to how many "Novel Pages" I had written to this point. So there you have it folks. All this (All chapters up to this one) is essentially my version of Volume I, II, and III, via different perspectives during the time when the "set up" stages of this batch of YGGDRASIL players arrives in the New World.

While I will fully acknowledge that there have been and will be bumps in the road, I don't think that I'm doing abysmal. Nor am I writing the best thing since bacon cheese burgers and sushi. Mmmm . . . bacon . . . eh? Where was I? Sushi? Hellz yes!

Oops . . . back to the notes.

The Lizardman Arc starts AND ENDS in the Fourth Volume of the Light Novel alone. Which is something I found pretty jarring. Especially when there is an apparent rough estimated MONTH of time from his attaining Adamantite within a mere two WEEKS of arriving in the New World, to his actions concerning the Lizardmen north of Nazarick.

In order to better portray this arc and the changes I am incorporating into it. I have gone and re-read the whole Arc in the Light Novel from the **_physical hard back copy_ **I own from YenPress and will have beside my laptop as I write this as hard reference material. Please keep this in mind for those of you who meld WEB Novel and LIGHT Novel.

I get that there are ideas in the Web Novel that are interesting and fun. Hells, Arche as a kinky slave to Shalltear and teaching Ainz ballroom dance? Oddly I was and still am rather ok with that. It was hells of a lot better than getting dismembered even after death and having her sisters sold into slavery and worked to death. Jesus!

So yes, there are elements from the Web Novel that I DO find fascinating and even wish were part of the Canon Light Novel, but that's just it, they aren't. I may call out certain things from the Web Novel when convenient, or when this is an utter lack of material from the Light Novel in certain regards, but by no means am I catering to it as canon. Kugane Maruyama even stated that it (the Web Novel) is like a readable rough draft.

I believe that I have been stating this case above previously. In fact I am quite certain I have at least twice. Yet I guess it needs repeating on occasion. Oh well.

It is during this approximate month of time that the events of all the previous and a portion of the following Draconis section of this fic take place.

SO. For the "canon" of The Exiled, the Lizardman Arc occurs SIMULTANEOUSLY with the events in the next part of the Draconis perspective.

* * *

 **Chapter 23: Expansion Begins**

* * *

The lizard men of the Great Tove Forrest area north of the Great Tomb of Nazarick carried on about their days to the south of the Great Lake. Their home rested in the marshes that lined the southern border of the Azerlisia Mountains. The mountain range itself acted stoically as an insurmountable natural border between the Kingdom of Re-Estize and the Baharuth Empire.

Many decades ago, the lizard men ancestors that migrated here had attempted to settle farther to the north of the Great Lake, but war between their kind and the residents of the time had found them lacking and beaten back to the south in the marshlands. The toadmen who occupied the land farther north had been more advanced in technology and certain members of that race had the ability to tame the larger indigenous races that lived within the Great Lake's depths.

Ever since their utter defeat by the toadmen, relations between each other whenever they encountered one another was extraordinarily sour.

Zaryusu Shasha exited his home. The house standing up on its ten stilt legs, keeping the home aloft above the marsh waters. All lizard man homes were similar in nature in that regard. Slung over his back were three fat fish, each one over three feet in length. Young lizard men children ran about, generating splashing and splooshing noises as they chased each other. A group of them spotted the Traveler and watched him as he passed.

Except they were not watching him, per se, but the fish he carried. Zaryusu was pretty certain that they were drooling at the fattened morsels he carried. Not that he could blame them. Part of him just wanted to chomp down on them himself.

Acting as if he had not seen them, he chuckled a bit. It was his current destination that he was delivering his parcel of fish to. The home lying at the end of his first stop of the day lay crooked and sloped into the water. It had not stilts and was designed like this on purpose. As he approached, the smell of the fish he carried with him earned an affection seeking cry of happiness from within the building.

A single long serpent's head poked out from the window and flicked a tongue at him to confirm that it was truly Zaryusu. Rororo bobbed his head up and down confirming that its master was present. The "pet" coiled around him affectionately and Zaryusu gently patted him in return. The smooth scales were rather pleasant for him to touch. He tossed the fish into the hut with a splash . . . or more along the lines of a "splat" given the interior.

"Ha. I brought you a snack. A part of me wants to stay a play with you a bit, but I need to go check on the fish. Eat up and I'll be back later."

Zaryusu had raised Rororo from a tiny thing, so by now he felt like conversing with him was not a problem at this point. For his part, Rororo seemed to understand him and rubbed him affectionately a few more times before retreating back into the hut. The sounds of feeding could be heard as he walked away to go check on his fish farm.

* * *

 **The Fake Nazarick Cabin**

 **-Six Days After Ainz's Warning to the Lizard Man Tribes-**

* * *

Cocytus sat at the main strategy table they had set up. All around him were various Grotesques from the game that had been assigned to him as his generals. They varied wildly; from one with the appearance like a praying mantis, another like a spider, even one that was more giant brain than body. Yet despite all of there unique appearances, they all served Ainz Ooal Gown. All of them were Cocytus's minions as well.

The room itself was simple and only held a single ornament, the giant hanging mirror. Despite that the cabin was large, measuring an easy twenty-one yards on all sides and over sixteen feet tall. This room acted as their strategy room. Spread across the rough map of the area lie the various villages of the lizard men. Among the pieces on the table were the figures that represented each of the groups within the small army Cocytus had been ordered to make do with by Ainz.

The numbers within his forces added as such: 2,200 zombies, 2.200 skeletons, 300 undead beasts, 150 skeletal archers, and 100 skeletal riders for a total of 4,950 – plus the commander and his guard.

Arrayed against them was the five tribe lizard man alliance.

This consisted of 103 warriors, 5 priests, 7 hunters, 124 males, and 105 females from the Green Claw tribe.

The Small Fang tribe fielded 65 warriors, 1 priest, 16 hunters, 111 males, and 94 females.

Next came the Razor Tail tribe with their contribution: 89 heavy warriors, 3 priests, 6 hunters, 99 males, and 81 females.

Not to be out done, the Dragon Tusk tribe rallied 125 warriors, 2 priests, 10 hunters, 98 males, and 32 females.

Finally came the Red Eye tribe with their 47 warriors, 15 priests, 6 hunters, 59 males, and 77 females.

Altogether they forged a force of 429 warriors, 26 priests, 45 hunters, 491 males, and 389 females. This brought their total alliance's fighting capacity to 1,380 including the tribe chieftains and Zaryusu.

The lizardmen were outnumbered by this force roughly 3 to 1.

Despite this numerical advantage, the scout reports of one lizard man that had gone forth from his village and garnered this alliance of splintered, once warring group of tribes had piqued his warrior's interest. To be honest, the whispers carried back by his scouts reported that he carried what seemed to be an item of some great significance to these tribes. A weapon with a name. Now that definitely piqued his curiosity.

As a warrior, named weapons had history, power, and prestige all wrapped into one. Some were even notorious rather than famous due to some kind of curse and malevolent history.

He huffed and a matching pair of icy clouds left his carapace. How he relished the opportunity and honor of fighting such a battle with another wielder of a named blade! However, this was not the time to be fantasizing about such things. He had been given a mission! This was his chance to prove his worth to Lord Ainz. Yet something about this situation made him uneasy. He just could not put a claw on what specifically was making feel this very odd way.

He knew quite well that he had the numerical advantage and there were also the advantages of not needing food, drink, or even air to fight. There was also the lack of fatigue that plagued normal mortal armies and need for true medical supplies. In spite of these advantages, the army he was given by Ainz himself was woefully weak. Against these lizard men would they truly come out victorious? Cocytus shook his head as he scolded himself mentally.

 _NO, SUCH THOUGHTS ARE BLASPHEMY AGAINST THE SUPREME ONES. I WAS GIVEN THIS TASK TO BRING GLORY TO NAZARICK AND AINZ OOAL GOWN._

The restrictions and rules he had been given for this mission straight from the top was that:

A. Cocytus himself was not allowed to fight or reveal himself. This also carried over to his minions. He was also to make use of just the forces granted to him.

B. The Elder Lich that had been created by Ainz was only to be used if absolutely necessary.

C. The final big point of the three that stood out the most was that he was to think for himself and make his own decision whenever possible.

A spark went through him as he revisited the last major point that Ainz had given him. To use his own discretion. Did this mean that Ainz was giving him the permission to make a few of his own decisions so long as the result was acceptable? Was this a test of his ability as a warlord? He huffed more icy steam from his mandibles.

 _SUCH INSIGHT OF THE SUPREME ONE! A TEST OF MY ABILITIES AND TRUST AS A GUARDIAN OF NAZARICK. TRULY I AM BLESSED WITH SUCH A LORD!_

He needed someone to help dispel his doubts and advise him all the same. He had never truly commanded in this level of capacity, but then again, he did know someone who had. But would that be permissible? Taking the final point into account all over again, he shook his heads of his doubts and took note of the days that Ainz's undead messenger had given those Lizard men of the Green Claw tribe.

Two days left out of the eight.

"THAT SHOULD BE ENOUGH TIME TO FINISH MY PREPARATIONS. I HAVE A [ _Message_ ] I NEED TO MAKE. BRING ME A [ _Message_ ] SCROLL."

One of his minions bowed deeply and hurried to comply with the order. They had not seen Cocytus this worked up and eager in some time. It would be an honor and a pleasure to see what he came up with. As the minion left the doors, he promptly came back in, only to be followed very shortly by a maid with a chingnon hairstyle. Her unblinking eyes seemed to scan the whole room at one time without the need for her to move her head around. Her legs were covered in talismans and her petite form belied the strength she possessed.

Despite the fact that Cocytus's minions nearly all were stronger than her both in stats and levels, they subverted to her. Power, or rather . . . authority in Nazarick was not truly by actual strength but by who had been created directly by the Supreme Beings. It was in this regard that Entoma was superior to the minions. Entoma Vasilissa Zeta stopped just short of the table and placed the parcel she was totting on the floor before greeting the Guardian of the Fifth Floor.

"Masssster Cocytus, I have brought youuuu scroooolls from Lord Ainz. They are for you tooo make use of in your mission."

Her voice was that of a cute girl and most would have fallen for it if they did not have previous knowledge of what gave her that voice. Putting aside that thought for now, Cocytus nodded as he greeting the member of the Pleiades in return.

"GREETINGS ENTOMA, I GRACIOUSLY ACCEPT THESE SCROLLS. LET US SEE THEM."

Entoma's head tilted to the side as she looked at the table.

"I would be happy to do soooo, but there are several. Could the table perhaps be cleared so I can put them there for youuuu?"

Cocytus could see her point and nodded firmly in agreement. Entoma clapped her hands together in response.

"Thank youu. Sooo chop chop! Let's cleaaar iiiit."

The minions immediately began cleaning off the table, being surprisingly mindful of the map and the pieces that had been placed all over it. [ _Lift Object_ ] was being used to ensure that the map and its contents were not ruffled so they would not have to rearrange the whole thing when they placed the map back on the table later.

Confirming that an acceptable area of the table was cleared off, Entoma brought forth the contents of the satchel she hauled with her. Withdrawing several scrolls, she placed them each on the table and explained what each of them were. These were magic scrolls with spells written upon them. The parchment used was from the barfolk from Abelion Hills. Demiurge called them bi-pedal sheep, yet in reality they were a sentient race of demi-humans. Ainz had not yet understood the true source of the new parchments.

"Thissss one is a Teleportation Scroll. They were made from the skins harvesssted by Lord Demiuuuuurge."

Cocytus's mandibles clacked a bit in a form of sardonic smile.

"DEMIURGE HAS PULLED AHEAD OF ME AGAIN IT WOULD SEEM."

A dry laugh came from a few of his minions at the implied jab.

As one of the Guardians of Nazarick and a peer of Demiurge, he was glad and happy for the success of his compatriot in his venture forth to begin the steps necessary to bring Ainz Ooal Gown's name to all the corners of the world. Demiurge had succeeded in his mission thus far and proven his worth to Nazarick. As the brains of the Guardians, this was to be expected of him. Cocytus could not fully quell the tinge of jealousy he felt though. He was a Guardian in the truest sense of the word. A warrior first and foremost, who's sword acting in the name of his lord . . . leader of all the Supreme Ones, Ainz Ooal Gown.

He struggled to fully grasp just how he could also prove his own worth to Ainz-sama until this mission came to him. However, the massive power difference between these tribal lizard men and Nazarick was a joke. This so called "war" was little more than a slaughter, as some of them had put it, a "Harvest Festival" to gather corpses for Lord Ainz to experiment on with creating undead from something other than humans.

This knowledge, coupled with the restrictions he had been placed under, made him unusually nervous. He could not fail the Supreme One. Yet the skeletons and undead he had been provided had no individual intelligence and ability to act on an independent basis. Grunting a bit, he set aside a group of the scrolls before looking to the Peliades Maid.

"I MUST ASK YOU TO GIVE THANKS TO LORD AINZ."

Entoma sluggishly nodded her head in response. Curious as to her lack of verbal response and movement afterward, he asked a question of her.

"ARE YOU NOT RETURNING?"

"Nooo. I was toooold to watch how the battle goooes."

 _SO SHE'S BEEN SENT AS AN OBSERVER._ Cocytus knew that he was being watched now by not just Ainz, but probably the other Guardians as well. Such a level of pressure he had never felt before. Was this anxiety? _WAIT, I WAS TOLD TO USE MY OWN DECISIONS. I HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY. PERHAPS LORD AINZ WOULD SCOLD ME LATER, BUT IF IT IS FROM HIM . . ._

Cocytus plucked a [ _Message_ ] scroll from the pile and used it.

"DRACONIS-SAMA."

The voice on the other side held a tone of surprise. Cocytus did not think such a thing possible, but it was obvious from the inflection. To think that he would surprise a being that the Supreme One thought an equal and friend was small victory he would relish.

"Is this Cocytus? Well now, this is a surprise. Give me a moment."

Cocytus waited until Draconis spoke again. The rest of his minions stared at him in shock. Entoma, for what it was worth, merely watched him in silence. The face mask bug maintaining its glassy, empty look. A bit of time went by before Draconis spoke again. When he did, it sounded like he had just sat down in some private room. The thought of him retreating to a private chamber to just focus on this [ _Message_ ] both honored and humbled the Fifth Floor Guardian.

"Alright. I apologize for the wait. What is it you needed?"

"PLEASE DO NOT APOLOGIZE. IT IS MY FAULT FOR INTERRUPTING WHATEVER IT WAS YOU WERE UNDERTAKING. YOU ARE A FRIEND OF LORD AINZ."

"A friend I may be Cocytus, but you felt the need to contact me in such a way with little warning so it must be something of importance. Such a thing is rude to keep waiting if one can help it."

"I SEE. I AM CURRENTLY UNDERTAKING A MISSION DIRECTLY FROM LORD AINZ. HOWEVER, I WAS ORDERED TO PERFORM THIS TASK UNDER CERTAIN RESTRICTIONS. ONE OF THEM WAS TO ACT AS OFTEN AS I CAN UNDER MY OWN DISCRETION. AS SUCH I FELT THE NEED TO BESEECH YOU OF THAT FAVOR THAT YOU GRACIOUSLY ALLOWED ME TO REQUEST OF YOU."

At this bit of information, his minions let out a mix of "oh" and "ah". To be granted the request of a favor of the powerful was a great honor regardless of who and where. But what would he request? The might of Nazarick was enough to conquer any from this pathetic region of marshland.

"I do recall telling you such a thing. So what is it you need?"

Cocytus took the next few moments explaining his objective to Draconis. After going over the details of his objective, there was a protracted silence. This utter lack of response made them all tense.

"Cocytus . . . where are you precisely?"

The question made a few of Cocytus's minions swallow. The curious tone held a kind of dark undercurrent that hinted at potential violence. There was definitely an odd dissatisfaction . . . no . . . disapproval was more precise a term. Did Draconis find something about Ainz's mission for him unacceptable? Was it the other way around – with the mission being unsuitable for Cocytus? No one could really tell.

"I AM NOT ALLOWED TO REVEAL THAT INFORMATION DRACONIS-SAMA."

Even though Draconis Brightblade was by no means a Supreme One of Nazarick as a native, the fact that – like Supreme One Yamaiko's "little sister" - he had visited on frequent occasions implied that he was at least accepted by the majority of Ainz Ooal Gown to be a person of equivalent power and a friend . . . for the most part. Cocytus remembered the few times that Lady Yamaiko had brought her "younger sister" to the Fifth Floor. The "sister" was an Elf Maiden. How she considered her a "little sister" was beyond him. Perhaps it was like that of a brother-in-arms relationship? An Oath Sister perhaps? Now was not the time to dwell upon such things though.

"Fair enough Cocytus, but I cannot well send help when I know not your location."

 _HE'S SENDING SOMETHING OR SOMEONE TO ASSIST ME?_

"WHAT IS IT YOU MEAN TO SEND ME THAT WOULD HELP ME?"

"Not what Cocytus. 'Who' would be more accurate." There was a brief pause again before a chuckle met their ears. "Ah, found you. Thank you Chronos."

The group tensed. How had Draconis found their location when Cocytus had done nothing to give their location away. Yet before any of them could say anything the temperature in the cabin dropped to dangerously cold levels. Frost began to form upon the wood and floor. Icicles formed from the ceiling. Cocytus felt nothing, but all his minions did as they were not primarily ice resistant as he was. A squall of snow like a white out blizzard formed before them as a long, shapely leg stepped out from the unnatural weather phenomena. Heeled boots clacked on the wooden floor as long, voluminous teal hair blew about. Ice blue eyes with a hard light met his multi-faceted compound eyes.

"ESDEATH."

The yuki-onna huntress smiled and bowed with a small flourish of her hands. The temperature warmed again, though some of the ice did not immediately begin to melt.

"Yes, I believe she wished to return the debt owed to you for watching over her for those years. She will act as a kind of Aide-De-Camp and provide you with both battle and logistical support. My work at the moment has her with idle time on her hands."

Baffled by this development, Cocytus found himself speaking before realizing it was out loud.

"HOW DID YOU FIND THIS PLACE? I DID NOT GIVE YOU THE DETAILS."

"I have my methods as does Ainz. Do not be so surprised Cocytus."

 _HE MAKES A STRONG POINT. IF HE HAS MAGICAL ITEMS AS LORD AINZ, IT WOULD NOT BE HARD TO FIND US WHEN WE ARE NOT HIDING WITH MAGIC._

Their current location was not warded with magic to avoid detection, so it was hardly a surprise when they really began to think about it.

"Please keep in mind Cocytus, that I have given her permission to defend herself and act at her own discretion so long as it does not result in utterly souring our relations with Ainz Ooal Gown. The same goes for any action that may sour your relation with The Lair."

Even seated as he was, Cocytus was taller than Esdeath. The snow huntress stood at a height of 170 cm, or around 5 feet 7 inches. Whereas Cocytus stood a massive 2.5 meters, or 8.2 feet tall. Yet despite this massive difference, the minions in the room and Entoma could tell that she was every bit his equal. A confident smirk and crossed her lips as she looked at him via one eye. She closed her right eye as she looked up toward him in an assured pose.

"I must admit, that I did not think that this would happen quite so soon Cocytus. Please allow me to return the favor for watching over my slumber."

As the two ice wielders gathered across the table, Entoma retreated a bit and took a scroll from the sleeve of her risque high necked maid uniform.

* * *

 **Great Tomb of Nazarick**

 **-Ainz's Office-**

* * *

Albedo shuffled about with scrolls and other assorted pieces of paper work. Part of her still could not quite get over the recent events surrounding them. Shalltear's battle with Ainz himself and then Draconis's visit at the behest of Ainz himself. She had tried but failed to shake that terrifying feeling of being crushed by both Ainz and Draconis's auras. How did that exile exude a power level on par with the very leader of the Supreme Ones?

More than that, Ainz seemed to have little issue discussing things with the exile. Had he not fought against them in the past? How did Ainz-sama forgive such a transgression? It was rumored that Draconis had once been among the original founding members before they had created the Great Tomb of Nazarick, before they had even created them, the Guardians!

Yet at some point before Nazarick had even been a passing thought to them, there had been a falling out with them. Draconis had abandoned them! The first to leave even before they formed Ainz Ooal Gown! Such betrayal! She just did not get it. Especially how a surprising number of the Supreme Ones had been welcoming, glad even! To have him visit every so often. Why? Did not his first abandonment exclude him from their inner workings?

"I just don't understand! Why does our magnificent Lord Ainz tolerate such a person?"

After the Exiled's visit, Ainz had taken an interest in learning about each of the denizens of Nazarick in depth and had requested as much knowledge be brought to him as possible to his study. Their Lord had locked himself up in this room and read exhaustedly, though he was an undead, so it really had not bothered him that much. As the Commander of the Guardians and his lover (Self Proclaimed), she had made sure to check on their Lord and convince him to take breaks. He had taken her advice, which overjoyed her, but she also had noticed a thin veil of caution around her for reasons she failed to comprehend.

Had she truly displeased him so much when she had questioned Draconis's tardiness to his summons? He was not a Supreme One, merely and hanger-on as far as she was concerned.

Sighing heavily as such depressing thoughts threatened to dampen her mood again, she mentally cursed when a peculiar tome fell off the stack she was cleaning around. Kneeling down to pick it up, she noticed that the book had opened to a page that did not contain writing, but what appeared to be a unbelievably detailed painting of what looked like Ainz-sama and a collection of individuals that she recognized a small number of the Supreme Ones. Only nine of them were present and one of them was Draconis to the left of Lord Touch Me, their arms over each others shoulders with swords raised in some kind of victory pose. Ainz-sama was not wearing his God Level items and was hanging off of Warrior Takemikazuchi's outstretched arm that rested upon a huge katana that seemed more like a slab of steel than an actual refined blade that he was known by Nazarick for wielding.

Lord Nishikienrai, the half-golem ninja dangled behind Draconis and Touch Me, giving them both some kind of hand gesture behind their heads. Wish III was also present. Sitting upon the ground was a fiddler crab like figure with what looked like goggles and a giant wrench. She recognized that one as Amanomahitotsu, the Gourmet Blacksmith of Nazarick. Lords Flatfoot and Ancient One were also present.

"What is this?"

There was light scribble down at the near bottom of the lifelike painting within the tome. Was this a magical tome that could render an image? Despite the obvious nature of peeping on the private life of who ever owned this book, her curiosity got the best of her and she read the script out loud to herself.

" _ **Nine's Own Goal. We the merry band of fools who struck out countless times against the normal and pursued insane personal goals. Thus was the reason for our name, our clan. Here we stand before our very first World Item: Atlas."**_

Looking closer at the picture, she could see what appeared to be some kind of planetary globe, yet it did not appear like any world globe she had laid eyes upon. It looked more like a tree. A tree with nine different branches and nine different spheres upon the ends of each branch. They held smaller satellites around each of them, yet were all connected by this one, central tree.

Little did she realize that this was a representation for YGGDRASIL itself, with each of the servers representing a separate "World". Atlas allowed the owners to see various bits of information about the areas they had previously explored, so going back for missed bits of treasure was made possible.

"I don't remember this World Item being in the Treasury of Nazarick . . ."

She stared at the image. They all looked like they were rejoicing. Yet she had never seen Lord Ainz act in such a way. This was obviously something that had been taken long before Ainz Ooal Gown's founding. Could this be the reason why Lord Ainz still valued Draconis? Flipping the page, she turned to another image.

This one startled her. Another image, but unlike the rejoicing one before it there stood Touch Me facing an obviously furious Draconis. A broken case at the center of the room saw Ainz-sama beside it with a hand on his skull. Most of the others were nowhere to be seen, but a few new figures were. Bukubukuchagama-sama and her own creator Tabula Smaragdina.

"Tabula-sama?"

" _ **Well, tragedy struck us today. Despite increasing our number with Bukubukuchagama and Tabula-san, another group broke into our home via a planted member and ran off with Atlas. Draconis wanted to pursue, given the nature of the World Item I could not blame him. But Touch Me-san is adamant about not going after the guy. Draconis insists on it, and I oddly agree with him, but Touch Me just won't budge." -Nishikienrai**_

She did not see Lord Ainz with his God Items in this picture, yet their gear was indeed better looking, though Touch Me was still in his World Champion armor. Did this mean that Touch Me was truly that much stronger than all the other Supreme Ones for a time? Was this The Ninja Nishikienrai's journal?

Albedo was shocked. Was this what sparked the beginning of Draconis's exile? That he was adamant about pursuing someone who had wronged them? Someone who obviously had been accepted into their number but betrayed them and stolen a World Item they no longer possessed? Growing ever more confused, Albedo shut the book but did not place it back on the stack with the others. Placing it on a shelf that she knew she would remember, the succubus made a mental promise to herself to pursue this information more keenly when she had time.

As she placed the book away, Ainz entered the room.

"Lord Ainz! Please, how can I serve you?" Ainz took a seat at the desk and took hold of another book, opening it in front of him before answering her.

"Albedo, I have been reading up on many of the finer details of Nazarick on the our people within its protective walls. Including all of you as its protectors."

The seriousness in his voice kept her from going into a frenzy, her professionalism as the leader of the Guardians taking precedent. Though she was still rather overjoyed that he felt them worthy of such study.

"Before we were transported to this New World, I tampered with your essence, changed a part of you without your creator's permission."

She nodded sincerely, Ainz glanced at her and saw no malice or anger at him for the admission. Bracing himself, he turned to fully face her in his chair.

"I wrote in that you loved me. The affection that you feel for me is manufactured." He braced for an emotional explosion. Yet despite his nervousness, the history of hers that he had read through along with the push he had received from Draconis made him feel more at ease. Regardless of how this was about to turn out, he felt that he would have a more clear conscious. "That tampering was not called for and inappropriate even for me."

Albedo was a bit surprised and even worried that Ainz-sama would confess something like this.

"What part of it did you change to my affections for you Lord Ainz?"

Ainz stiffened.

 _Do I tell her? Just blurt out 'you were a bitch'? Argh! Not good!_

Albedo frowned slightly, she could tell from her lord's hesitance that it probably was not something good. But if that was the case, did that really make changing a part of her personality to loving Ainz that bad? Smiling softly, she spoke with a reassuring nature.

"My Lord Ainz, please tell me."

"Are you sure Albedo? It may offend you."

"I promise on my place as Commander of the Guardians of Nazarick that I shall temper my reaction as best I can."

Ainz nodded with resolve.

"It stated that you were extremely hard to get along with and always made things harder for those around you and acted too snobbish."

Albedo leaned back a bit and stared at their Supreme One with half lidded eyes. Her golden yellow orbs nearly burned a pair of laser holes into Ainz's own empty sockets. Her voice was completely deadpan.

"You mean to say I was a bitch?"

"Uh . . . umu . . . you are right. I rather had not put it in such a way."

The beautiful Guardian turned and took a subtle glance toward the journal of Nishikienrai. Did her creator really make her with such a negative trait? Yet Lord Ainz had changed that in her. Was that really such a bad thing to have it turned into?

"I see. My Lord, please do not concern yourself on my behalf. You saw fit to change that part of me for whatever reason. You need not worry."

Ainz nodded and turned back to the desk. A buzzing feeling took hold and he recognized a [ _Message_ ].

"Yes?"

"Lord Ainzzz. This is Entoma."

"Oh? Yes Entoma. Go ahead. How is Cocytus doing in the war against the lizard men to the north?"

Albedo looked to him with some interest.

"Cocytus has not yet engaaaaged the Lizard men in coooombat with the forcesssss you gave him.

Curious and surprised, Ainz sat straighter in his seat. The tiny crimson flames in his empty eye sockets glowed brighter. He thought for certain that Cocytus would have engaged them by now. What was going on?

"Really now? Is he preparing some kind of plan with the forces I gave him?"

There was a poignant pause before the Pleiades Maid answered him and her voice was filled with uncertainty.

"He issss. In a waaay, but he hassss asssked for help."

"Truly? From who? I did tell him to act on his own as much as possible, so I am willing to forgive him for asking for assistance to a degree."

This time the pause was even longer and Ainz began to grow concerned.

"Entoma?"

"Forgive me Lord Ainzzz. But he has asked for a favor from the Exiled One. Draconisssss."

"Oh?" Ainz did recall that when Draconis had retrieved Esdeath, that he had granted the Floor Guardian a favor to ask of later. He had not thought too much on the matter, but it seemed like Cocytus had indeed taken matters into his own hands and gotten in contact with him. "Well, well now. Is he there now? Perhaps I should make a visit?"

"No Lord Ainzzz, he sent that snow woman. Esssdeaaathhhh."

Entoma fairly spat the name. Ainz was not wholly surprised by Entoma's dislike of the Yuki-Onna woman Draconis had left in Nazarick for a time. Esdeath was a NPC that had been the debate of many among their own number for some time. As a huntress, she relished the feeling of the hunt regardless of who or what the prey she was after was. She did not always kill it, at times, merely taunt or play with the target of her fascination when not truly meaning to harm. But if she pursued you as an object to kill, she was relentless and powerful.

"Interesting. Thank you for informing me Entoma. I will be watching to see how Cocytus makes use of the assistance he has gained. Please continue to observe things as they develop."

"As you command Lord Ainzz-samaaa."

Albedo had gotten the main points of the conversation and frowned in concern. Even if Ainz-sama had ordered Cocytus to act on his own as much as possible, asking for help from an outsider? Never mind the tentative friendship he held with Nazarick in the past, he was still an Exile.

"Ainz-sama. Forgive me for speaking out of place, but you are not going to punish Cocytus for asking help of an outsider? That would make Nazarick seem weak!"

Ainz kept in mind the background that Tabula had written into Albedo's character and existence. She was proud and independent to a large degree. Cunning and fastidious when she wanted to be and a master in keeping administrations together. She loathed humans and would never, ever fully acknowledge any of them as an equal. Bu there in lay his method of appeasing and calming her passionate indignation.

"An outsider he may be Albedo, but Draconis was once a part of the inner circle before events drove a wedge between him and Touch Me. Allow me to enlighten you so that you may better serve Nazarick."

He turned to her and his eyes blazed, the sight took her off guard and she bowed low even as she took a knee in submission.

"My Lord Ainz!"

"Before the foundation of our illustrious Nazarick, the founding nine of us were not Ainz Ooal Gown, but Nine's Own Goal. We had not found the other thirty-three yet. Mankind hounded us, for none of us were human, Draconis was particularly hunted as he was a rare existence, a Dragon that could take human guise."

A dragon?! Albedo's eyes widened, she had thought his name a mere tribute to the powerful creatures that even the Supreme Ones took care with when fighting. It certainly explained why his aura was as fierce and powerful as Lord Ainz!

"Touch Me saved many of us in the past as we came slowly unto our powers. However, one candidate for our cabal betrayed our trust and stole the World Item: Atlas from under our noses. Draconis, always burning with a sense of justice like Touch Me – demanded that we go after the thief and take back what we had earned. However Touch Me forbade it and afterwards, the attack upon us became fiercer from the humans. Our numbers increased with several of the remaining thirty-two. Bukubukuchagama and your own master, Tabula joined us. When Ulbert joined us and insisted that we get revenge upon those hunting us, Draconis began to have a change of heart towards humans. Instead of hating them blindly, he began to pity them. After one particular human hunt, a few of our comrades took our revenge too far in Draconis's eyes and at the time, Touch Me was our leader. Not me."

"Lord Touch Me lead Ainz Ooal Gown?!"

"No Albedo. We had not even given thought to the name of Ainz Ooal Gown at that time. We were still Nine's Own Goal. A cabal of non humans and monsters who rallied together against humans that hunted us. Those that crossed us faced our wrath. Touch Me turned a blind eye to some of our more extreme revenge hunts. That rankled Draconis and at the next council gathering, he voiced his displeasure. Of course, a many of us disagreed with him. Ulbert among them. However an equally fair share of us found ourselves understanding why Draconis felt such a way."

Albedo frowned as she thought on these astonishing revelations her lord spoke of. Such private knowledge to be shared with her was exhilarating . . . or rather . . . should have been, but this news only served to make her think on things. She remembered quite clearly her own master Tabula-sama talking to himself at times. Occasionally Draconis's name would come up.

" _Ooh, Draconis would understand this mythology's nuances . . . too bad he and Touch Me-san had that falling out before we founded Ainz Ooal Gown. At least he visits once in a while."_

"Is this disagreement the reason for his Exile? Touch Me-sama did not stand for his audacity?"

"Quite the opposite actually Albedo. Both men realized that they were both at fault. Draconis spoke to Touch Me in private one day and then before all of us, bowed out of the cabal. He did not wish to become a crack in our foundations and bring us to ruin. Yet this departure made Touch Me realize that he perhaps was not suited to lead any longer. He dissolved Nine's Own Goal and we recreated our cabal from the ground up. Ainz Ooal Gown. But Touch Me would not take up the mantle of leadership again. Instead, the leader was put to a vote."

"You Lord Ainz! I never realized! Am I to understand that in part of Draconis not being exiled, but exiling _himself_ , that prompted Ainz Ooal Gown's founding with you as leader?"

He chuckled darkly. It was meant as self depreciation, but Albedo took it as a sign of acknowledgment.

"It is. Do you see now?"

Albedo bowed low to the floor. To think that Draconis, without even realizing it, had had a hand in the creation of the glorious Ainz Ooal Gown with the master of the Supreme One's Ainz-sama as leader! Ainz's appreciation and friendship with The Exiled now made complete sense to her. Yet something disagreed with her still.

"I do my Lord, but what of the times he has clashed violently against you all?"

"Oh? Those fights? I did mention his sense of justice yes?" She nodded and he lifted a skeletal hand. "There were times when we went on hunts in revenge against humankind for the wrongs they would inflict upon us, but even we of evil intent even when justified can take things too far. His armed interventions against us were to serve as a reminder to us that we too have an obligation to ensure that we do not give the humans due reason to hunt us in return. Not all humans are weak, and not all humans hate non-humans like us. Some are even greater monsters than we are. Draconis always did believe that with all his being. After all, he took an awakened dragon blooded human as his mate."

Albedo recoiled in surprise and shock.

"What?!"

She had never heard of any of them taking a mate or a wife or husband.

"Umu! She rules with twelve mighty human warriors. One of which is every bit an equal to Touch Me. This is one reason I tell you to not underestimate humans here in this New World."

"Lord Ainz, if he told them of our inner workings . . .!"

Ainz held up a thin, boney hand to silence her sudden hysteria.

"Peace! Peace Albedo. They know little about Ainz Ooal Gown other than who we are, and those who were close friends to Draconis. Not once have they assaulted the Great Tomb of Nazarick. Not once have we attempted to assault their own home. We have clashed however, now that I think about it. A single time in the past over rare prismatic ores. The exchanges were marvelous, powerful things! Such power from humans was an incredible sight to behold, and terrifying. I am glad that those of us who struggled against them came to an understanding and ceased fighting."

 _Dammit, the inner core members of Avalon were all hardcore PvP'ers and anti-PK'ers. PKK'ers! Damn they were strong as shit! That Lancelot guy killed Ulbert before he knew what was going on. He had that insane set of Mp draining sword skills! That was cheating like hells! Stupid devs._

 _At least after they depleted the ore mine they never went back to it and let us farm it for a while . . . so that's why Draconis suddenly got a whole lot of that Celestial Uranium while playing solo . . . his wife . . . damn! A benefit of being married to a woman who played I guess._

 _Though now that I really think about those events at that time, he never once showed up to help them against us and never once showed up to help us against them. I guess he really did stay neutral. We knew nothing about their powers and they only knew who we were character wise. Nothing about our powers or play styles._

 _We never really participated in the guild war stuff in the game, but we heard the rumors. Avalon was a top tier Guild in those events. Even if they were not top ten in the Guild Rankings overall, their Guild War Ranking was number three. I don't even want to think of the teamwork and builds they had for their characters to keep that kind of rank. Damn, what was their guild base's costs?! I don't even want to know . . ._

While Ainz was thinking about that, Albedo stared at the floor in shock. Was this why Lord Ainz spoke of never underestimating the humans? Was Draconis actually still helping them by cavorting with humans that were so powerful as to be on equal footing with the Supreme Ones? Was he hunting them? Perhaps convincing them to leave Nazarick alone? This changed her paranoid, negative view of Draconis to something more skewed and at least a bit more respectable. Especially since his actions inadvertently place Lord Ainz by vote of the other Supreme Beings as their leader. However did that mean that Ainz was not the strongest?

"Lord Ainz . . . forgive me for such a audacious question but does what you have just told mean that you were not the most powerful of the Supreme Beings?"

 _Ack! Crap, how did she just jump to that logic? Well I did say they voted me and that Touch-san did lead us before we actually became a guild._

Ainz nodded, his bare skull's eye sockets brightened. Somehow, being able to talk about these things made him happy. He didn't feel so alone anymore. Was this was Draconis meant by being open? He felt like a teacher as they talked and it was oddly soothing on his nerves.

"Power is a fickle thing Albedo. Nishikienrai could perform amazing feats of stealth and assassination. Felling foes in single hits that were unaware. Warrior Takemikazuchi was our strongest physical fighter among all of the members of Ainz Ooal Gown. Touch Me was one of the world's nine World Champions. An absolute powerhouse all around. Lady Bukubukuchagama was our best bastion of defensive fighting and an excellent strategist. What I am getting at Albedo, is that all of us outclassed each other in some way. I was the best in administration and keeping everyone from tearing each other's throats out. We did not always get along at times, but we were family. Sometimes we fight. It is just how it is sometimes."

Albedo nodded, but struggled to fully comprehend his words.

"Forgive me Ainz-sama, but I am struggling to find the meaning of your words of wisdom. I am unworthy of such intimate knowledge!"

Ainz placed a hand on her bare shoulder and she trembled in both surprise and delight. His eye flames smoldered as they looked at each other.

"Your position as the Commander of the Guardians requires you to understand things that even Demiurge may not. Know this Albedo, and heed this well. I was chosen by my peers to lead for my power, yes, but not necessarily the power you may think. Mine was the power to unify the fools and misfits of our home. Draconis left of his own choice, but it was too ensure that his views did not shatter our own. It was his personal selfish Own Goal of Nine's Own Goal before Ainz Ooal Gown. He knew it was selfish and yet he still thought of us after he left. Think on that."

He released her and went back to the paperwork on his desk.

"Now. I have much work to get back to. I would like to watch Cocytus and Esdeath's plan for these lizardmen. Let us look forward to it."

Albedo bowed and returned to her secretarial work, but her mind began to wander. These revelations made her realize just how naive they were to the history of their home, the lives of their creators and how they interacted. Something told her that journal she had found would answer more of her questions. She would have to read it more in depth at a later time.

Still though . . . _Ainz-sama touched me! Eeeeiiiii!_

* * *

 **Cocytus's Strategy Room**

* * *

The pieces upon the map had been moved around a bit to allow them a better view of the very rough topography. Esdeath cringed at the lack of details. The maps that Avalon and The Lair made use of for the New World were just as rough until Draconis had ordered an aerial and ground based cartographer to remap the areas they were in to their standard.

Here, she did not have that luxury and the time window was questionable at best. Cocytus had not been given a time frame, but he did not wish to keep Ainz waiting overly long. The idea of keeping your liege waiting for a long period of time was jarring. Both of them could agree that such a thing placed a bad taste in their mouths.

She pointed at a location they had marked with hut-like structures with an index finger.

"So this village to the south belongs to a group called the Green Claws?"

"THAT IS CORRECT. THAT ONE SENT A SINGLE MEMBER OUT AND IT RETURNED WITH AN ALLIANCE OF ALL THE REMAINING TRIBES. TRULY IMPRESSIVE FOR THE TIME IT DID IT IN."

Esdeath could agree with him about that. Still, when she looked at the numbers, their alliance were vastly outnumbered compared to the force Ainz had given Cocytus. However, she did not know a key piece of information.

"Cocytus? What kind of undead did he give you? How are they armed?"

The Ice Guardian huffed, another gout of frosty steam clouded a portion of the room for a moment as he answered. To her, he felt frustrated and nervous. She could feel some sympathy for him. Draconis had give her a hint as to what he thought Ainz was doing with Cocytus, but the Guardian of Nazarick's Fifth Floor was a warrior, not a commander. He was better suited to the frontlines and not the rear echelon of command.

 _Ainz Ooal Gown is likely testing Cocytus's ability to act on his own if needed and cut off from them. But such a thing is not easy on the mind for those not suited to such a task. Especially ones that view their leadership as infallible. Oh my Lord, you are a wise one indeed._

Esdeath understood Cocytus well from the one sided conversation he would make with her while she was still imprisoned.

"BASIC UNDEAD AND SKELETONS LEAD BY AN ELDER LICH. THEY ONLY BEAR RUSTED WEAPONS AND BASIC BOWS AND ARROWS."

Esdeath frowned. Basic skeleton warriors and cavaliers with not a single even masterwork weapon? She winced and immediately understood his hesitance. Even in this weak world they found themselves in, the force he had would probably be devastated in singular combat against these lizard men. Humans would die unless a hero was among them against such numbers, but these were not humans. Thinking about it for a moment, this made less sense now.

"Cocytus. They are demi-humans like you and others in Nazarick. They are not humans, nor have they offended Nazarick. Why destroy them?"

Cocytus was about to answer, when her words really took root. As a warrior, the answer was simple, because his lord told him so.

"IT IS NOT MY PLACE TO QUESTION. ONLY DO."

"Yet he has restricted you to a force and conditions that very well may see your defeat. He told you to act on your own as much as possible. You called my liege and asked him for help. I was sent to be that help to you. Perhaps this is less to destroy them and more to test you. That is what my liege thought when he sent me to you Cocytus. To see what you would do if cut off from Nazarick?"

The very thought of being cut off from the Great Tomb of Nazarick honestly scared Cocytus more than defeat. Esdeath merely stared at him with questioning, cold, ice blue eyes. The huntress was looking at him with a glint in her eyes that told him that she knew that she had gotten into his mind. A true huntress indeed, he felt like her prey at the moment.

"ASSUMING WHAT YOU SAY IS TRUE. I CANNOT GO BACK TO AINZ TO ASK FOR MORE THAN WHAT HE HAS ALREADY BEEN GENEROUS ENOUGH TO GIVE ME."

"Did he tell you that?"

"WHAT?"

The minions and Entoma alike rather gaped at her question. Was she questioning the Surpeme One's words?

"I asked if those were his words exactly. He told you act on your own. If it reinforces your odds of winning by recognizing that this fight would not be won with what you have, or would be cutting it too close for comfort, then why fight when it is not a life or death situation for Nazarick?"

"BY DOING THIS WITH WHAT I HAVE BEEN GIVEN, THEN I WILL BRING GREATER GLORY TO AINZ-SAMA."

"Good."

Esdeath's firm response to Cocytus's words confused them. Had she not just tried to question Lord Ainz's orders? Cocytus could see that her eyes had lost a bit of their predatory nature, though it was still there, it was not as vicious or challenging. There was a glint that seemed like . . . contentment?

"WHAT ARE YOU SCHEMING ESDEATH?"

"Nothing. You finally firmed up your resolve and spoke with confidence. Now the real question is the 'how' you will go about it. You took your first independent step with contacting my master and my arrival. Now you merely need to make use of me to reach your end goal. You wanted advise? You are getting it, even if I need to play hard ball with that head of yours."

Cocytus fidgeted in his chair. The ice maiden huntress was right, that was the first truly confident step he had made since the beginning of this mission. Had his resolve really dwindled and faltered so much under the pressure of trying to remain so single mindedly focused on just the words of the orders he had received? Demiurge would have read between the lines and carried out his mission with gusto. Even Mare when they had first arrived in this New World had done an incredible service to Ainz with the suggestion of hiding the Great Tomb of Nazarick with earth. Instead, when his own turn had come up, he had stagnated. Part of him felt ashamed at the act, but in acting on his own accord and asking for help, he had covered his weakness and taken measures to improve upon what he had been ordered to do.

 _I AM TRULY INDEBTED TO DRACONIS-SAMA THROUGH ESDEATH. HE TRULY HAS INCREDIBLE SERVANTS. I WILL LEARN ALL I CAN IN ORDER TO BETTER MY SERVICE TO LORD AINZ!_

"VERY WELL. I SEE THAT NOW. THANK YOU FOR YOUR ASSISTANCE. LET US BEGIN THE PLANNING TO EMERGE VICTORIOUS."

Esdeath smiled and nodded as she began truly planning out what Cocytus would do with the forces he was given against this alliance of the lizard man tribes. Pieces on the table were moved about and theories began passing between the two about the possible powers the lizard men could likely call forth. Every now and then a minion of Cocytus's would ask a question or point something out, and theories would change.

To the side, Entoma watched with both apprehension and a growing suspicion concerning the frosty huntress.

* * *

 **Okay! First chapter of the Lizard Man Arc of The Exiled is done!**

 **No Character Profile this chapter b/c I didn't really feel like one was appropriate for the moment.**

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses.**

* * *

 **Rmarcano321:** Rexcalibur is a wind element spell tome from the Fire Emblem series. It does not appear in every installment however.

 **Awayuki:** After the Lizard Man Arc, we will be returning to Draconis's side of things.

 **Loki98065:** Thanks for enjoying that fight. I hope you continue to drop a line every now and then!

 **Guest:** OC bias is something that I do not believe any writer is immune to even in original works of writing. It is their, or in this case, my own creation. Of course we'd like them to shine.

Draconis is not the strongest in Ainz Ooal Gown, he isn't even an official member. Where do people miss what I've written? He visits as a guest.

As for the chapters leading up to the Leviathan fight and the fight itself. I believe you may have missed the point. There are things out there that can threaten even Ainz. Kugane just hasn't introduced them yet. Kugane, in his own chuunibyou admits to loving OP stories and basically rofl stomping.

It's hard to be OP when something can give you a run for your money.

Ainz probably can't kill Raid Bosses "with precision" as you put it.

Never mind that he does not carry the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown with him wherever he goes. It is the Guild Item and as such he isn't SO stupid as to risk it away from Nazarick. If it gets destroyed or stolen who knows what that would do the Nazarick. Since that would mean the destruction of the Guild. Would all of Nazarick be destroyed along with it? Would they all disappear? No one knows and Kugane has given no clues as to such a possibility in the New World.

Especially since PDL is guarding the Eight Greed King's Guild Item.

Raid Bosses in many games IRL and even in fiction are generally Immune to that little thing known as Instant Death Effects.

Guess who specialized in that?

That's right folks. Ainz/Momonga. Ainz's play style is a support role, a backliner and wildcard. His build is not optimized for PvP, but his planning when he's informed can make up for it. Even then though a player who knows their shit like Touch Me will win more often that lose against Ainz. I am pretty damn sure that the game of YGGDRASIL had items that could cancel Death Effects. Which would cripple Ainz by a staggering amount.

Tabula was stronger than Ainz in sheer firepower, Ainz was flexible. Ulbert was the strongest caster, Bukubukuchagama was the best at handling aggro and tanking.

There were other members of Ainz Ooal Gown who probably were SO much better than Ainz as a player, Ainz just has utterly bonkers LUCK and also, plot armor. Let's face it, he does. Even worse than Naruto.

Ainz's plot armor IS well executed though in that the man is in a world where the majority of what he has encountered THUS FAR, has been less than a third his level.

In MMORPG's a five level differential can mean life or death in areas of the game. A **70 to 80** level difference? No contest.

The fight with Leviathan was to introduce a new power factor I believed the New World needed. One that can and could easily crush their own world's inhabitants and its invaders (YGGDRASIL players). With effort or without dependent on their levels. This also shows that I'm not afraid to beat the tar out of my Original Characters from time to time. Another sample of that is my Code Geass fic.

Regardless. If you don't like it, fair enough. I hope you find a fic you do enjoy.

 **UndeadLord22:** Did I? Did I not? You'll find out. Yeah, a few chapters. I mean c'mon, the Lizard Man Arc is a whole book. Just for it to end with Cocytus going, "One strike, One strike! One strike!" ONE PAAAAAAWWWWWNCHHHHHHHH! To every single lizardman except for two of them, which was arm off then in two pieces. And then Zaryusu DECAPITATION. FATALITY. FLAWLESS VICTORY. PERFECT.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Thank you for enjoying the Leviathan fight. It'll make another appearance later on. As will his other Primordial Peerage.

 **NecroSerpent101:** I agree with that sentiment. There's Sebas (Obviously). Cocytus is neutral. Aura and Mare are just young and free. But out of them all I think Shalltear has the absolute, hands down, best character development of all the NPCs of Nazarick throughout the whole damn Light Novel series. My favorite NPC of Nazarick hands down.

 **MadDan90:** Lolz. -1.5 points for cliffy? Fair enough given the timing and nature of that one.

 **Dimension Distorter:** Well, in comparison to your question as to why such a powerful creature like Leviathan being close to a "beginning town".

COUGH! Saga Frontier 2! COUGH.

I bought the game b/c players said it was very open for an RPG. I was intrigued and started playing. Fifteen minutes into the game and only one save done, I went into the starting city aqueducts. Entered into a hallway within and encountered the END GAME OPTIONAL BOSS. Can't run, died HARD. Max HP of melee fighter? 14. Got it for 980 damage. DEAD. No warnings about "You get a bad feeling about this. Go Back?".

 **R.E.W.4:** Sorry about that. Yes, part of it was Final Fantasy, but XIV not XV, though I did love the music in XV. The story? Eh, there has been FAR better.

I'm not really sweating that review when the person has 0 fics of his own.

 **PoseidonisPlayz:** Glad you are enjoying The Exiled. I look forward to seeing you drop in again in the future.

 **PervySageChuck:** Been awhile. Good to see you drop in again. I am glad to see you enjoyed the fight. I do admit, I did kind of unleash my evil writer side at the end of this one.

 **Solarblaster:** Oh, you'll see.

 **Deathstrokenorris:** If that's what you think. Have a GREAT DAY :D

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** I appreciate the support! Yeah, the New World needed something other than World Items to keep them on their toes.

 **RyuujiVantek:** You'll find out soon enough. XD


	26. Chapter 24: Lizard Man Conflict

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Disclaimer and Author's Notes:**

Kugane Maruyama owns it, YenPress Licenses the hardback LN releases in English.

At the end of this chapter will be a little extra treat for everyone. NO SKIPPING THE CHAPTER!

Also I find myself playing A LOT of Girls Frontline lately . . . it's sad when I'm getting more out of Mobile Gaming than Console gaming with few exceptions . . . =_=

Now if only I could get my WA2000 Rifle Girl or M950 Pistol Girl . . . argh!

* * *

 **Chapter 24: Lizard Man Conflict**

* * *

The halls were empty of people and staff and the soft clack of greaves on polished, hand worked stone echoed through the building. Black and white marbled floors were inlaid with silver both as decoration and as holy wards. The vaulted ceilings were dozens of feet high and seemed to swallow the light of the sconces. Sepulchers of flame light the halls with soft light. In the far distance, one could hear the choirs of the evening finishing the last service's hymns.

The cardinals had finally adjourned for the day. His reports were complete for the time being. He was a handsome figure to look upon, but that was merely the age changing mask that made his age appear older than he truly was. Masks were worn for anyone of the Black Scripture members when they deployed.

The Captain of the Black Scripture sighed heavily. The latest meeting had not been good. Even though it had been a meeting of the High Priests, the most important that one could attend, nothing about it had been pleasant.

Not only had the Sunlight Scripture been utterly annihilated by this odd magic caster Ainz Ooal Gown, but the best group of the Clearwater Scripture had gone missing on a personal investigation to a location to the northeast of their borders. Such massive losses had seriously hurt the Slane Theocracy.

It would take ten years to recover the lost strength from the devastated Sunlight Scriptures alone. Now with the unknown disappearance of the Clearwater Scripture members, the Cardinals were in an uproar. It did not help at all when they of the Black Scripture had returned with two dead and the Sacred Treasure of the Six Great Gods damaged and its wielder dead by the time they arrived back. When he had reported the powerful undead that did this, all of the higher ups had nearly lost it completely.

He had never seen them so rancorous.

"Something tells me I am not going to have a day off in the near future."

As he continued to walk, he realized two things for the day. He had a scheduled meeting to attempt to find a wife . . . or rather, multiple wives. He was one of only three awakened Godkins. As such, he was constantly under pressure to have many children to increase the odds of awakening more in the future generations and further strengthening the Theocracy. When you added that to the experiments in various fields of study he still had to perform and his duties as Captain, he would not have much time to himself.

Secondly, that there was a soft, familiar clacking as he approached the only other person in the halls. Most all the other people even allowed in these halls were either working or gone for the day. He only paused as she came into view. She was dressed in the colors of the Black Scriptures, but it was her hair and eyes that mismatched in opposed black and white that gave her identity away.

The cross like double scythe was propped against the wall she leaned against as a small multi-faceted cube clicked and clacked about in her hands. A toy introduced by the Six Great Gods that entertained boys and girls alike. Even adults fooled with it every now and then. A Rubik-Q.

His eyes strayed to where her ears were hidden by her hair, but he caught himself. However she smirked, having caught him beginning to stare. He knew that she hated her ears because they reminded her of her origins.

"Ah, so it's the boya." She spoke as she continued to click away at the toy. As she did so, "No Death—No Life"; the extra seat of the Black Scriptures finished one side completely. When it locked into placed, she sighed lightly. "Finishing one side is easy. Yet two is hard, no?"

For him, it actually wasn't, but he felt like saying anything would only aggravate her. Having opted to remain silent, he merely gave her a small grin. She appeared no older than her late teens, yet she had yet to age a day since he had earned the Black Scripture's First Seat.

As if not truly concerned about whether or not he actually answered her or not, she kept speaking.

"So what were the high priests up in a fuss about? It must have been something important yes?"

He sighed and shrugged as he answered her.

"There was quite the report on everything. Did you not read it?"

Her voice in response was flat and devoid of interest as she never took her eyes from the Rubik-Q.

"Why should I? It goes so much faster merely hearing it directly from someone in the know." She fidgeted with the Rubik-Q a bit more, never once did she look at him. "Was Thousand Eyes Astrologer's reading wrong? All of you sortied to dominate Catastrophe Dragon Lord did you not?"

He grimaced a bit before speaking.

". . . We lost two men and took a critically injured when we encountered a powerful undead akin to a vampire. The injured succumbed to the wound and died when we arrived."

"Who died?" Zesshi made the statement as one who ask about the weather to a stranger. Her voice held to affection, no concern . . . no sadness or malice either. It was like a person on the other side of the world who had nothing to do with it. Whereas some would balk at such a nonchalant attitude, for Zesshi Zetsumei, it was an appropriate one.

"Beaumarchais and Cedran fell. Cedran while trying to protect Lady Kaire and Beaumarchais when he tried restraining the vampire after Lady Kaire stopped it. Lady Kaire was mortally wounded in the process and died when we arrived back."

"So Huge Shield Myriad Barriers and Divine Chain are both dead. Hmm. Tell me. The vampire or me? Who would win in a fight?"

The Captain wore a sardonic smirk before he answered rather plainly. "You would of course."

Zesshi's small smile of anticipation was quelled in an instant with his answer. He knew about her obsession with strength and the twisted mindset she had concerning being undefeated. While most would exult in the accomplishment of being undefeated, Zesshi craved that feeling. The experience of losing. It was abnormal to say the least. He himself could not wrap his mind around it. Especially since she was a Godkin.

"Such a disappointment. Just once I would like to feel what defeat is."

She ran a hand up and down her abdomen with a twisting grin and dark giggle.

"Whether he was handsome or ugly, moral or immoral, upright or twisted, I wonder what strengths our child would possess?"

Two members of the high clergy slowly made their way down the halls and past them. Their voices were exceedingly soft, but to Zesshi, her half elven blood bestowed upon her extraordinarily sensitive hearing. As much as she hated her ears for what they represented in her damned birth, they did come with advantages as well. The Captain of the Black Scripture had not heard their words clearly, but he did see her subtle reaction to their conversation.

"So Thousand Eyes Astrologer sent that request to investigate that Seraphim? Incredulous!"

"I know, but she's being forgiven. A Seraph Empyrean with a name is unheard of! Even the Six Great Gods held records stating that a generic Seraph of that rank had the potential to destroy them if they angered it."

"To think that a named one admits to being subservient to a mortal. What kind of power . . . ?"

"Perhaps the Gods have sent him as a protector? That monster killed three of our Black Scripture. Clementine defected from us and our priestess was killed on top of stealing her crown of wisdom!"

Zesshi Zetsumei smirked, her eyes gleamed with both intrigue and manic curiosity.

 _A man with a_ servant _so powerful that the Six Great Gods would have been threatened by? This has my attention now . . . I believe it's time to visit the 11th Seat and have a little chat. He . . .heh . . . heheheh!_

* * *

 **Tove Forrest**

* * *

Zaryusu and his brother Shasuryu stood at the edges of the defenses that their alliance had constructed. Today was the day that the undead sphere of agonized faces had warned them about. Looking out upon their marshland home, the far edge of the southern forest began to show signs of eerie unrest. Birds had all flown from their nests and refused to return. A dark, deathly silence oozed from those woodlands like a creeping nightmare. They could all feel it. Something dark, unnatural approached.

"The undead brother."

Shasuryu grunted in acknowledgment as flickers of movement could be seen coming out of the tree line.

At first it was a small handful. At the sight some of the younger warriors had chuckled at such a paltry showing. No clothing or armor, just old bones with worn out and rusted weapons of human make. The older, more experience hunters and fighters had nodded, expecting this, but remained more wary. The priests hissed and spat in offense to such desecrations stumbling about.

Those feelings gave way to a bit of worry as more and more, and even more poured out of the forest. From the darkened shadows of the tree canopy, it seemed endless. Hundreds upon hundreds filed out of the darkened woods. Then, to the surprise of them, actually began forming ranks! Even Zaryusu as a Traveler had never seen or heard of such a thing. This worried him greatly.

 _They're organized . . . is this the work of a necromancer? Even if it is, this many undead is unheard of._

"Brother, there has to be over a thousand of them!"

That may be so, but I see none of them possess ranged weaponry. Zaryusu looked again and the Chief of the Green Claw tribe was indeed correct. He could not spy a single archer or sling user among the skeletons present. There was no sign of even a crossbow. Just two giant ranks of skeletal soldiers with rusted blades. To either side of them, the other tribe chiefs stepped up.

"Haha! That's quite the collection of bones don't you think?" Zenberu Gugu gnashed in a good natured fashion despite the situation. As a fellow Traveler to Zaryusu, despite the difference in placed visited and the time spent, their duel had solidified both his respect and attitude toward the Green Claw tribe. His asymmetrical arm hefted the three meter long solid steel, dwarven halberd gifted to him by the dwarves he befriended long ago in the north.

Zaryusu nodded in agreement. In sheer number, he remembered that the undead were a powerful thing when lead by someone powerful. The inexhaustible soldiers were a terror against humankind who tired easily and did not have enough physical strength to wipe them out in singular blows. But they were not humans. He had heard of humans that were of heroic proportions, but they were far and too few between.

"Indeed Zenberu. I am worried about whoever is capable of commanding such a large number of undead."

"Hm. Wise." The tribe chieftain who wore a second of the Four Lizard man treasures spoke frankly. White Dragon Bone armor fed off of the intellect of the wearer in order to become harder and more resilient the more intelligent the wearer. However, because it used the wearer's intellect, it rendered them simple minded in a few regards. For Kyuku Zuzu of the Razor Tail tribe, it meant that he only spoke in simple phrases, if at all. The very fact that he could still do so spoke of his indeed, great intellect.

Behind them all, on the other side of the mud and wood barriers they had erected, were those gathered for war. All of them painted in the myriad colors of the tribes now united. The roasted herbal plant's hallucinogenic properties had been utilized in a ritual to help raise morale by convincing many of them that the lights and spirits of their ancestors were now upon them, ready to help them fight this force that threatened their homes.

The chieftains of the tribes raised their weapons into the air and thrust them forward. With a cacophonous battle cry, the gathered lizard men rushed out to meet the skeletal soldiers.

Little did any of them realize at that time, that a pair of legs dangled from a tree branch deeper into the woods. A small bird of ice and snow perched on a tree closer to the edge watched with lightly glowing eyes. Through it, Esdeath watched the events of the battle unfolding in eager anticipation. She knew that the skeletons and undead beasts that Cocytus had shown her would probably lose if these lizard fought with a unified front. Despite the advantages an army of undead provided, it also had a fatal flaw.

They had no individual intellect for battle. Cocytus had already had his doubts, but his blind loyalty and direct, single minded warrior's spirit had refused to let him think on a commander's level. They would follow orders in general, but in terms of a case-by-case tactical level, they were fodder. It would be due to this fatal flaw, that a skilled commander was needed to truly make an army of undead apocalyptic levels of terrifying.

To be honest, she hoped that the lizard men would emerge triumphant against the forces Cocytus deployed. There was wasted potential here and Ainz's order to wipe them out chaffed her a great deal. They were not human, against humans – at least when it came to Nazarick – she could relate somewhat. Humans almost always lashed out against what they did not understand or labeled foreign, even each other. Why punish the lizardman tribes to test Cocytus when the same could have very easily been done within Nazarick's own confines?

Draconis had informed her about Shalltear's loss of control due to a World Item and in turn, all of her peers of The Lair were also informed. They understood the risks involved with acting in the open in this New World, and the advent of the World Item used by what she knew now was the Slane Theocracy had quickly made them all create a new contingency plan.

The Global Contingency Plan had been made as a procedure to follow in case a World Item showed up in hostile hands. She had a special item meant to instantly warp her back to The Lair if need be. Here however, she heavily doubted they possessed such a powerful thing.

"Let's see how well you command your forces Cocytus. I gave you plenty of battle advice, but how you execute them will be up to you."

She grinned as she heard the soft clacking of archers and skeletons beneath her perch. She had convinced him to forgo placing all his forces in the open at the start of combat. Holding onto his calvary and archers in reserve and his undead beasts as sentinels and bodyguards to his archers. Not a single command would come from her, nor would she advise him during this fight. It was his mission, not hers, she would merely observe as Entoma was. Though she personally thought that she definitely had the best seat in the house to watch this clash.

"Good luck lizard men heroes."

* * *

The lizard men rushed headlong at the masses of skeleton warriors. They held no formations as they charged, merely driven by the belief of their ancestors watching over them and the thoughts of their home. Naturally, the swiftest of foot crashed into the lightly moving undead soldiers, their boney forms lightweight in the marshes, allowing them to move with little sinking into the wet ground.

Normally, against skeletal undead, spears and other piercing weapons were the worst kind of armament you could bring to bear. Points passed harmlessly though openings in the rib cages that held no vital organs to puncture. Thrusts to the throat and eyes were useless as no flesh filled those locations.

Likewise, bladed slashing weapons and other such implements were of little effect here. There were no tendons or ligaments to severe in order to stop opponents from standing much less run or to get them to drop their weapon.

Many societies would struggle against such obvious advantages. Yet for the lizard men with their less than modern society in technology, this was not an issue. Many of them possessed simple, but effective weapons. More to the point, clubs and maces of stone. The heavy, bludgeoning weaponry was very effective against the skeletal undead masses. Every time a weapon was swung, brittle bones shattered and crumbled.

Even though mortal groans of death were heard on occasion from the lizard man defenders, it was few compared to the sounds of shattering undead soldiers. The bones of the infantry Cocytus had deployed littered the marshlands aplenty. But this was what Cocytus had been waiting for just as the lines of battle clashed.

The whistling of arrows pierced the air and as the skeletal soldiers pulled back at their center line, arrows rained down from above. The skeletons were receiving back up from the orders the Floor Guardian had sent out at Esdeath's advice.

" _Rain death from above upon your own forces. They are undead so they do not care nor would they be affected."_

In truth, he had planned to wait until they were tired from engaging the soldiers before firing, but she and a few of his own minions had suggested firing during their exchanges right when the lines of battle merged. This gave the lizard men engaging little to no time to adjust rather than expecting it as their fighting began. They were also having the skeleton infantry slowly give ground as to surround their opponents into a killing circle with arrows and flanking.

While firing at tired foes was a sound strategy to better ensure accuracy, Esdeath pointed out a very keen point that Cocytus had not considered.

" _They can get a second wind. A surge of adrenaline and power that defies rationale and sense. Such a thing can be_ VERY _dangerous to allow your opponent to gain. Doing it this way will make them expend their stamina that much faster and drain them quickly."_

Just the first exchange alone saw to over five hundred of the soldiers decimated as arrows and blows were rained down upon the lizard men. Those who charged the quickest were now a liability to their brethren that did not find themselves fully surrounded.

From their vantage point, the chieftains slapped tails on the ground in frustration and anger. From atop the mud wall they had crafted with the help of the priests, Zenbel growled lowly. Yet from his location, they all could hear him.

"Who ever is controlling them is testing the waters. While the ones that have not been surrounded are making progress carving a path to those trapped, they aren't all focusing on a single point. This is a human tactic. I believe they called it, 'encirclement'."

Zaryusu nodded in agreement. Did this mean that the necromancer was a human who wanted to make this territory his own? What point did it have other than being out of the way? He had never heard of anyone deploying the undead in such a militaristic fashion as a Traveler. This was truly worrying.

The undead obviously had archer support from just beyond the tree line. It was about the maximum distance from the trees to the encircled fighting, but it was still in range. Surely this was not all that this necromancer had. The females and many others had taken to throwing large stones to great effect against the skeletal footmen.

As they began to break through to their still fighting comrades though, a new threat presented itself. The skeleton calvary. The fleshless riders charged out from the wooded shelter of the forest of Tove with crude spears and lances level. The riders heeded not their own forces and bull rushed through them and lizard men alike. Impaling whatever fleshy target they could, dragging them through the marsh and mud as they either screamed in pain and surprise or gurgled as they were forcibly drowned as they were forced into the muck and kept there as they were dragged.

Zenbel and Zaryusu could not believe their eyes at the brutality displayed by undead used in such a fashion. They had not seen the devastating power of mounted calvary charges, but now they understood the tales of those they had met who had witnessed such powerful assaults. A few of their allies were lucky when spears and lances shattered from the weight of their victims. They were in terrible pain, but still rose and stumbled back to safety as their fellow tribesmen and women covered them as best as they could.

The archers came out from the forest cover, fully exposing themselves as they continued to fire at the now retreating lizard men.

Shasuryu looked to his brother with a measure of concern and anger.

"Damn it all! We have to help them!"

"Calm." The wearer of White Dragon Bone spoke simply. Losing their rationale here would prove disastrous. The calvary were a definite problem and needed to be taken care of immediately, but what if there was more?

"We probably need to deploy ourselves now. Things have taken a turn for the worse."

They all nodded in agreement, but the real question was who to send and who to hold back?

From her perch and seeing through her blue bird, Esdeath smiled. Despite the beating they were suffering, this alliance of lizard men were putting up a respectable fight. She did feel a bit bad about her part in inflicting this pain upon them, but this was no "curb stomping" as she had heard Draconis mutter a few times in the past concerning their powers against those weaker than them. Such a thing was deplorable to him and as such, she had acquired a distaste of it as well. Though she did still feel that those weaker than her who grew too arrogant should be put in their place, there were other means to do such a thing rather than killing them. After all, if they could not learn from it, what was the point?

She found herself pumping her fist and lightly cheering them on as they broke away from the mounted charges and arrows, forcing the skeletons to over extend themselves. She wondered if they would take the bait, or ere on the side of caution.

"Oh? Are those leaders of theirs finally up to something?"

She watched as three of them sortied. The one with something akin to hair took aim with a sling. Her teal eyebrows rose in interest. A sling shot from that far? As the rock left the crude device, she was honest to the gods stunned. The rider he aimed at had its skull shattered and it fell from the undead steed it rode. Others glanced about having detected hostility from a new direction. While they were glancing about, another shot wrecked another rider from its mount.

Esdeath could not help to whistle in admiration. A sling shot hitting dead accurate at eighty-five yards and still holding enough power to shatter skulls? Impressive.

"Nice. Veeery nice. I believe I am liking these lizard men more and more by the minute." A broad, toothy grin plastered itself across her face. Finding herself giggling a bit, she sighed in content. This was proving to be quite the excursion. She wondered how Cocytus was taking these developments.

* * *

 **Strategy Room**

* * *

"INCREDIBLE." Was the only thing that he could say. This battle, these lizard men were exceeding everything that he had expected of them. They were far beyond what he had thought they would be.

Despite the sudden tactics that he had directed the undead with, they refused to give in and struck back. Even when they had become encircled, they had not given up and fought tooth and nail to escape. The calvary charge had shaken their morale, certainly, but the arrival of that sling wielder had yet again put them back on their feet.

Certainly, there was no doubt that one for one, the lizard men were superior to the undead they currently fought against, but he still had yet to deploy the zombies or undead beasts.

"SHALL WE HAVE THE FORCES FALL BACK TO THE TREE LINE AND SEE HOW THEY REACT TO IT?"

"Perhaps."

"We should rush down their weakest point and deal another blow."

"It could sow confusion."

His minions chimed in on their ideas before Cocytus glanced at Entoma. The Pleiades took an emerald green biscuit in her hands and munched on it. The sound of crunching met their ears. The face did not move despite the gruesome reality of what Entoma was really eating. Setting aside that thought for the moment, he sent forth the order to the undead horde.

* * *

The lizard men warily watched in confusion as the riders retreated ahead of their infantry allies and the soldiers that remained formed a kind of skeletal wall just before the forest with archers behind them. The cavaliers rode into the forest beyond eye sight.

"What kind of move is this? Are they taunting us?" Zenbel growled in aggravation.

The others around him slapped the ground with their tales in agreement.

"Should we attack?"

"I don't think so. It seems like a trap."

"Good . . . reason."

Zaryusu and Crusch stared at the strange move by the undead. It was then that the leaders felt a chill run up their tails and straight to their brains. A chill that came from being stared at by predator's eyes. By eyes like those of the more advanced toadmen to the north.

The brothers of the Green Claw tribe scanned the land in front of them and eventually saw it. A single vibrant blue bird that was sorely out of place. Ever since the arrival of the undead no birds or other natural wildlife had been seen or heard around the area. Yet this bird sat on a tree branch behind and above the undead roving about. It sang no song, but did not quiver or flutter about in fear. It merely stared at them.

"So you see it too? That blue bird."

Zaryusu nodded to the others. The bird never turned its eyes away from them. It was making them all feel uneasy. Eventually it took wing and flew deeper into the forest rather than away from it.

"Bird . . . disturbing."

"Agreed. Something about that bird is very off."

The rest of the chieftains nodded as they swished their tails in apprehension.

"So should we assault them?"

Crusch Lulu whipped her tail back and forth a bit before speaking.

"I have an idea. It will allow us to attack them, but not risk our own."

They nodded as she began to gather the priests. The collective number began casting their spells.

* * *

Esdeath nodded in both satisfaction and admiration. The lizard men were thinking before taking the bait recklessly. They did not charge after Cocytus's forces that were falling back as some warriors might have done. Though some tacticians and strategists might have disagreed with that decision and risked a charge regardless.

 _No, those lizard men are showing primitive, but definitely_ not _barbaric tendencies. I'm sure my liege would have befriended them. Still . . . how far can they go?_

Before she could come to a concrete decision on what to do next sense they spotted her bird, she eyed something peculiar. The muddy grounds of the marshes itself rose from murky waters. Each of them stood no more than her own height at five feet and eight inches.

These were swamp elementals summoned by the priests of the tribal alliance. They were not restrained by the sluggish terrain as they were a part of it. The magical creatures rushed the tree line and smashed into the remaining skeleton troops. Most soldiers and archers would have fled, but these undead were the mindless variant and as such, feebly struck back to no effect. In broad swaths they were being obliterated by appendages that stretched longer than the elementals were tall.

Esdeath sweat dropped.

 _Oh . . . Well now . . . That's unexpected. This changes the whole situation. I wonder what Cocytus will do now?_

Down below, the zombies and undead beasts that had been held as a trap for recklessly pursuing lizard men were swept up and destroyed by the swamp elementals. It was all rather impressive really. She had not quite expected them to be this intuitive.

* * *

Cocytus huffed and frosty air covered the room he sat in. This whole turn of events impressed him mightily. To think that they would respond in such a way. It was completely outside of what they had envisioned. The trap was being destroyed and the lizard men likely didn't even realize it as the elementals did their work. Some of his minions cursed their luck while a few others nodded, impressed as Cocytus was.

 _THEY HAVE MUCH POTENTIAL. THIS LEAVES ME WITH LITTLE CHOICE BUT TO DEPLOY THE COMMANDER. I HAVE CALVARY LEFT, BUT NOT THAT MUCH. HOW TO WORK THIS OUT?_

The thought came to him a moment later and his large mandibles that could split a man in two clacked together loudly. This was turning into a real battle that he was oddly rather enjoying.

"LET US CHANGE THINGS AS THEY HAVE. ELDER LICH. I COMMAND YOU TO ATTACK THE LIZARD MEN ON MY ORDER."

"Yes, Lord Cocytus. I, Iguvua shall conquer them to show them the might of Ainz Ooal Gown! I await your order!"

The undead cackled in anticipation.

* * *

 **Slane Theocracy**

* * *

Thousand Eyes Astrologer sighed as she sat in her chair and fiddled with her hat. Her rather slovenly appearance was due to the half empty decanter on her desk. She had been fiercely chewed out when the loss of the Clearwater Scriptures came to the front of attention with the Cardinals. Yet her own reason for said losses had saved her harsh disciplining. The mention of a Seraphim Empyrean, something that the Six Great Gods even respected and told as being a power beyond compare among the angelic hosts had all of them scrambling for more information.

Scribes had been sent to the great libraries and other temples to uncover as much information as possible on Seraphim Empyreans and if any of them had a formal name. Such a factor was immense, for names were not given to angels outside of their type. It was unprecedented.

She had spent a large portion of her power to even come close to finding that cave that she sensed that angel's presence in. The only way she had managed to find it was searching for the _lack_ of presence rather than the abundance of magical presence. Yet, despite that find, she was still quite unnerved. How was it that a _whole mountain_ was like a blank marker magically? The barriers and shields blocking any sort of divination magics was like nothing she had ever seen. She could tell that this place was abundantly potent.

Who ever this Seraphim, Chronos was serving had to be like the Six Great Gods. There was no other explanation for it.

She sighed heavily as she stared at the empty glass on her table. The soft amber brandy left within both taunted and soothed her in equal measure. Taunted because she did mind imbibing some more of the liquid. Soothed her because it took the edge of the scolding off. The huge black hat of hers moved its top, the hand like appendage at the top of it responded to her will and plucked the glass off of her desk.

"I might as well finish this off then go to sleep."

No sooner had she lifted the glass to her lips, her door opened. The presence that filled the room cut through her buzz and put her on the defensive. She glared at the doorway even as she scooted away as best she could, the legs of the chair screeched against the floor.

"Zetsumei! What are you doing?!"

The half elven woman grinned softly, yet it felt malicious. Her half lidded eyes were alight with mischief, something that the 11th Seat of the Black Scriptures had _never_ seen before. It was more frightening than facing the threat of the Catastrophe Dragon Lord's resurrection. What had gotten into the Extra Seat?

"Good evening Thousand Eyes. I just heard such an interesting rumor and thought that I should better understand it from its source rather than ask the ants."

Zesshi left her battle scythe against the door post and pulled a chair up for herself. Settling into it, she blithely watched as blue haired woman's face contorted into confusion rather than startled fear. Leaving her weapon by the door was only a placebo to ease the seer's worries, she could retrieve it in a heartbeat and then fell whoever or whatever she pleased if it came to that.

The black and white haired godkin traced a finger down the bottle of liquor. Clucking her tongue lightly, she chided the Black Scripture member playfully.

"Drinking in the main cathedral? Tut, tut, tut. Blasphemy, though I do suppose that I can overlook such a thing. I do it myself sometimes. Though I much prefer wine. Has this really driven you to drinking in the main temple complex?"

Thousand Eyes Astrologer had regain a bit of her mental equilibrium by this point and crossed her arms over her chest as she half glared at the woman who was considered the strongest.

"You have not seen the things I have Extra Seat."

"No. I have not. It is as you say. Yet . . ." Thousand Eyes backed into her seat as Zesshi's bloodlust came to the fore. It was like staring down a basilisk, you didn't dare look her in the mismatched eyes of hers. **"Who are you to talk with the things I've** _ **lived**_ **through? You aren't one of those outfitted with the Six Great Gods's Regalia."**

Shivering unbidden, Thousand Eyes clutched her hat to her chest like a child might with a precious stuffed animal, her eyes clenched shut as she formed her words.

"I'm sorry Extra Seat . . . I was out of line. P-p-pplease forgive me."

Zesshi leaned back in her chair and shook her head slowly.

"I shall when you provide me with the answer I seek."

The younger woman shivered at the cold tone even though the pressure was gone.

"W-what answer would that be?"

"Where did the Clearwater Scriptures disappear at?"

Thousand Eyes Astrologer's eyes grew wider than saucers. Now she knew that she was in for it. To oppose Zesshi was certain death, but to tell her where the Clearwater Scriptures had gone was even worse. Few people who did know Zesshi were disturbed by her obsession with being defeated by a stronger opponent and having a child with them to see how powerful that child would become.

Many of those that knew this dark secret blamed the leadership at the time of Zesshi's birth for separating her from her mother. The schism created and the dark whispers of how she was a child born from rape and abandonment had driven her mind and soul to a darkened place and shaped her view of being taken by someone more powerful than her, as her mother had been against her will with the Elf King.

This complex of hers manifested whenever mention of potentially strong foes and threats to the Slane Theocracy emerged, yet time and time again, they had been either subjugated, destroyed, or simply proven to be overblown in their true threat level. After so many years, Zesshi's obsession was less volatile, but instead simmered like a stew, ripe for the time such an event actually occurred. Personally, Thousand Eyes feared that if Zesshi were to encounter such a man, they would lose their strongest person, and she would lead a crusade against them or the elven nation. Either way it would be a slaughter.

"Please, mercy! Not that information."

Zesshi leaned forward with a cheshire cat grin and a quirked eyebrow as she placed a gloved hand on the younger woman's shoulder. Thousand Eyes flinched, but could not avert her eyes from the scorn filled orbs of the one they called "No Death, No Life".

"Oh, that ship has sailed dear Thousand Eyes. Now tell me . . . where . . . they . . . went."

Zesshi's voice was soft like velvet, but she could feel the venom in her words.

"Zetsumei, what do you think you are doing? Let the girl breath damn it."

The new voice at the door made them both look. Thousand Eyes resisted the urge to slump in relief, for this man was the one she least expected to come to her aide. He stood a stately five foot and ten inches. His hair was jet black and his eyes glowed green. He was like Zesshi, a half breed, but had been abandoned and had crawled his way to the Slane Theocracy. When others deigned to stone him to death for his blasphemous blood, several of the members of the Black Scriptures back then had refuted those yelling for his blood. That very blood was the reason why they had intervened.

Smoke gray scales covered the bridge of his nose. His sharp features and tied up hair revealed sharp ears and they too were wreathed in gray scales. His neck was also encased and instead of normal finger nails he possessed claws that could retract and deploy as a cat's would. He was lithe, yet build like a tank. A long tail wrapped around his waist like a belt when indoors, but when out and about he let it loose if it would not be a hindrance to those around him. It measured four feet long and had sharp barbs at the tip. As he frowned at his fellow half-breed, a long incisor revealed itself. One of his fangs.

He was a son of Brightness Dragon Lord. One of his experiments in mating with other races. Half dragon and half elven. He had mated with a fleeing elf as the price for not killing her and letting her go. However, when he was born, she abandoned him, ashamed of her act of allowing a non-elf to take her innocence.

He had been grateful to the Theocracy's Cardinals and vowed to serve the nation. That had been one hundred and eighty years ago. Zesshi was the only one alive in the Theocracy older than him, and even then, it was not by much. He did not hate his mother for leaving him, on the contrary, he burned with anger and fury at the Elf King, who treated his own race with such contempt that they fled and suffered because of his own despot rule. He wanted nothing less than that bastard's annihilation, but knew that it would take time. Keeping his powers hidden as much as possible was mandatory.

He was also the third awakened Godkin of the Theocracy, but not of the Six Great Gods. Rather, one of the Thirteen Heroes. Even though much of that group had not been human, the history records had wiped much of those details away. Yet the Cardinals of the time saw the value in his blood as a Godkin regardless and kept him close.

He was the leader of the Holocaust Scriptures. The assassins and wet works of the nation.

Zesshi sighed at him. The two of them were forbidden to fight each other. Honestly, she would not have minded fighting and losing to him. She felt a camaraderie with him that she did not feel at any time with anyone else in the entirety of their time in the Theocracy.

"Ugh, fiiine. You really have an odd sense of timing."

He huffed once before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"I have to give him some credit, I can tell he wants me." She laughed and Thousand Eyes shivered. "Yet those eggheads up top won't let us clash. What a rush that would be! I wouldn't mind if it was him . . ."

Zesshi got up from the chair and walked back to the door. Taking up her battle scythe again, she stepped out of the doorway.

"I will not relent on the location Thousand Eyes. You have a week before I come calling again."

With those parting words, Zesshi Zetsumei left. Thousand Eyes Astrologer slumped in her chair, needing another round of the brandy, she looked to see the bottle gone. Slapping herself in the forehead, she groaned.

"She took my drink . . . damn . . ."

* * *

 **Reader Review Time!**

* * *

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** I'm glad you are enjoying those interactions between them. The Journal of Nishikienrai was something I made to provide a few of the NPCs of Nazarick a chance to grow outside of the "go here and kill that" or "we are the strongest so F off." Thank you for enjoying that and you will see more of that in future chapters.

 **PervySageChuck:** The NOT time you spent reviewing this NOT chapter is Greatly appreciated. Thanks for the humor!

 **Akuma-Heika:** Yeah, I saw that after you reviewed . . . oops . . . I think it is a bit of a minor knee jerk detail in and of itself. Thank you for letting me know.

 **Awayuki:** It is indeed isn't it? Thank you for the time!

 **Dimension Distorter:** Well, that's what I'm writing for! Keep an eye out for older game title shout outs as you keep reading. You might be pleasantly surprised!

 **MadDan90:** Thanks for that. I do attempt to write outside the norm. I don't always hit it on the mark, but then again, that's life.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** You are not the only one to share in that feeling. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy the conclusion of my rendition of the Lizard Man Heroes Arc, however short it may be in comparison to the actual thing.

 **Cornelia Co:** My thanks for the compliments and encouragement. I hope to finish this.

 **UndeadLord22:** This will not turn into a Game of Thrones where EVERYONE DIES. I have not read the books or watched the show, but my roommates do a SWELL job of telling me everything and driving me up the wall. I swear that author is writing to troll his readers with the "Oh, you like this character? DEAD! LOLZ."

Yeaaaah, not a fan of that mindset.

 **Omegadramon2:** Thanks, but no, I have not seen a single episode of Season 3. They are milking and rushing the hell out of the anime rendition. The OP is getting stale, especially when they don't even add a bit of exposition to explain some things. Irregular at Magic High School did better than this and they only got a single season. I think I might have planted a war bomb with that statement . . . oh well!

 **RyuujiVantek:** Heh, Titanic . . .

 **Gene Evernight:** Well, here it is . . . tadaaah!

 **Varcisis:** Glad you are enjoying the story. I write as much as I am able. Getting support via reviews from you guys really does help to keep me going.

* * *

 **Now, here's that treat I spoke of at the beginning.**

 **A list of the characters I've made and introduced thus far in the story. Yes, I thought of all these myself. Inspiration comes from myths legends, anime, and video game alike, and my own twists on old folk tales and legends in our world and beyond.**

* * *

 **Factions of Note and Their Personages of Note.**

* * *

 **The Lair**

 **Leader**

Draconis Brightblade: "The Exiled", "Knight Most Heavenly", Husband of Artorias Pendragon

 **NPCs**

Samael: Commander of The Lair's Guardians

Luserina: Elven Marksman and Sky Gunner

Cecilia von Houten: Troubadour and Strategist of The Lair. Wife of Crozwell von Houten

Schwarzer Tod: Archmage and Alchemist of The Lair

The Bunny: Furry, fluffy, Vorpal Bunny of Death.

Hazuki Ame-no-Murakumo Hokushin: Blatt Meister of The Lair

Chronos Timetable: Seraphim Empyrean Diviner and Watcher

Esdeath: Yuki Onna Huntress, Rival to Akame

Akame: Archfiend Assassin, Sister to Kurome, Rival to Esdeath

Kurome: Archfiend Assassin, Sister to Akame

* * *

 **Avalon: "Crystal City", "Alabaster City"**

 **Leader**

Artorias Faye Pendragon: "Queen of Knights", Wife of Draconis Brightblade

 **Members in the New World with Artorias**

Lancelot Du Lac: Ninth World Champion of YGGDRASIL, "Mage Slayer", Knight of the Round

Gareth "Beuamains" Tellius: Supreme Commander of Avalon's Air Force

Mordred: Fell Knight of Avalon, Commander of The Judges and Executioners of Avalon

 **NPCs**

Crozwell von Houten: Knight Commander, Husband of Cecilia von Houten, Gawain's NPC

Lucretia Merces: Grandmaster Tactician of Avalon, Dean of Avalon's Magic Academy, Gareth's NPC

Lady Claire: Gareth's personal guard and second in command of Avalon's Air Force, Gareth's NPC

Lady Maribelle: A Sister of the Church of Bahamut, Noble of Avalon, Bedivere's NPC

Cathari: "The Invisible Howl", Assassin/Spy, Sniper

Esther Fellblood Babylonia: Executioner, Mordred's NPC

Evalyn: Artorias's Secretary/Guard, Artorias's NPC

Cavall: Artorias's "hunting hound", Artoarias's NPC

 **Special**

Ratotosker: One of the First Brood of World Dragon Midgardsomr.

* * *

 **Phantasmagoria**

 **Member**

Lucia Ignis Thundercry: Dragon Ascendant, mentor to Draconis

 **NPCs**

Lucia's Personal NPC: Not yet introduced.

* * *

 **Holy Roble Kingdom**

 **Adventurer's Guild**

Alkaid Ushiwakemaru Kai: Artorias's many times descended niece, Adamantite Adventurer and Godkin

Oitsu: Alkaid's Retainer and unregistered adventurer.

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

Father Yoland: Clergyman

Baron Whitepeak: Noble of the Kingdom

Aarik of Tildeus: Scholar, neophyte mage

 **Adventure's Guild**

Deidre: Member of Crystal Tear, Elf ranger/bard

Marko: Member of Crystal Tear, Spearman

* * *

 **Slane Theocracy**

 **Clearwater Scriptures**

Alicia: Human Fencer

Left Ramrod: Human Monk

 **Holocaust Scriptures**

Unknown Leader

* * *

 **Independent in the New World**

Leviathan Oceanis: One of several Primordials native to the New World.


	27. Chapter 25: Surprise Attacks

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Author's Notes and Disclaimer: Overlord is not mine. It is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.**

* * *

 **Chapter 25: Surprise Attacks**

* * *

Zaryusu Shasha and Crusch Lulu remained toward the edges of the celebrating that was going on within their camp alliance. The swamp elementals had wiped up the remaining undead that they had found and the tentative scouts that they had sent out to the tree line confirmed a whole horde of undead that would have made meals out of those who had pursued recklessly.

The rest of the skeletal cavaliers had retreated even further and the hunters of the alliance had found no traces of any further undead in the immediate area. Even after remaining on guard for several hours after the lull in the combat, no other attacks had come. Zenberu Gugu and Sukyu Juju raised fists in victory. Sukyu Juju was well known to be the best at guerrilla tactics and if he saw need to celebrate then they were surely in the clear.

However, he noticed that Sashuryu had opted to keep watch for a few moments longer just to be sure. Not that he could blame his brother. A noticeable number of those told to remain on guard had grumbled and complained, but the sharp tail slaps on the ground from the Green Claw tribe chieftain quelled those that did. The promise of extra fish and drink afterward helped as well.

Crusch had grinned and both of their tails poked and prodded each other despite their facial expressions. The other chieftains had teased the young couple, much to both of their embarrassment. Yet it was a time for celebration for beating back such a huge force of undead.

Eventually, Sashuryu would join them. Even he wouldn't stay away from this for too much longer.

The Green Claw tribe chieftain walked up and down the mud wall fortifications while watching the tree line to the south. It was little more than an ominous dark shadow at night than a sign of the trees of the forests of Tove. As a leader himself, he just could not shake the feeling that the undead had not retreated out of defeat, but as a part of some odd strategy.

It made little sense though, the only undead they had lost track off was the cavaliers. They had made their mud walls high and as such they could not be jumped by the skeletal horses. They also still had a few of the swamp elementals on the other side of the wall. In spite of all of this though, something nagged his mind even now. He knew what it was too. That blue bird. Was that a familiar of the necromancy user? It made little sense. Why such a creature when it was the undead that attacked? Perhaps it was just some kind of aesthetic?

"Maybe I'm just thinking too hard on it. Humph, well, I've looked out for long enough, any more and I'll end up falling asleep standing."

Waving to the sentries left, he descended down the wall to join the others. It wasn't too long before he encountered the other chieftains and joined in the merry making. Drink and food ridding them all of the stresses and trial they had just come out of.

Off in the distance, Esdeath sat on a branch with her back to the heart trunk, her long luxurious legs were crossed and propped up on the branch she sat on. Not that the sentries would have spotted her. She was over two hundred yards away and the torches barely touched the darkness beyond fifty feet. Somewhere below her, Iguvua began to approach, his orders to attack after the guard had lowered during the night was about to begin.

"I remember Master talking about how terrifying a night raid can be after a victory meal. Such lowered guard and ambush tactics can bring a unit to ruin. Let's see how fast they can rally. Oh Cocytus, you _are_ learning. It's so exciting!"

A near manic grin split her lips. This could be construed as going too far, but how they would fare in this scenario would seal her opinions on the lizard men as worth the time spent on them by Momonga . . . or was it Ainz Aoal Gown now? She understood the point of wanting to spread the name of one's organization, but changing it to one's personal name? To her that was sheer arrogance when not strictly done in memory and even then . . . well, he was her Master's friend and as such, it was not her place to question that peculiar action. Since she was acting as her Master's proxy however . . .

 _No Esdeath . . . It is not your place to countermand the decisions of Ainz Ooal Gown. I can do other things however . . . but how to do it so that it causes the least harm to Master's allies? Hrmm . . ._

* * *

 **Strategy Room**

* * *

It was oddly satisfying, commanding forces in this way. As a warrior he could appreciate and respect even these weak lizard men for their tenacity and strength in a way that seemed to defy the logic of Nazarick. Esdeath had not been wrong in her predictions. His opponents were every bit the fighters and had surprised him on more occasion during this "campaign" of his. That he was resorting to utilizing the commander of the forces in such a way was testament to that fact. Part of him yearned for the desire to wade into combat with them, be it against or even with them! Such a thought provoked another emotion that he did not think himself capable of.

Sadness.

Sadness that such obvious potential was be merely swept aside by the might of the Great Tomb of Nazarick. But why? This was the part he struggled with. He was personally created by one of the Supreme Beings! Why would, or rather, why _should_ he care for such weaklings when compared to himself and the other fellow Guardians?

 _THIS CONFUSION WILL BE THE END OF ME IF I DO NOT FIND A FIRM ANSWER. FIRST I WILL FINISH THIS BATTLE AND THEN ASK THE OTHERS ABOUT MY THOUGHTS. EVEN SHOULD I BE CALLED TO QUESTION, I CANNOT RID MY MIND OF THEM._

Esdeath was doing nothing to oppose him like he had feared she would as her master had done in the past with the Supreme Ones. Rather, she seemed to be thoroughly enjoying watching the results. She had not called him on mistakes made, nor scorned his first defeat. Part of her had cheered for the lizard men, that was quite clear, was this the same as Entoma? Observing regardless of win or lose?

If the lizard men could pull off a victory here, then he would be convinced.

"GO ELDER LICH. DO NOT RELENT."

"Yes, Lord Cocytus."

* * *

 **Re-Estize That Night . . .**

* * *

Blue Rose was known far and wide as the kingdom's prestigious Adamantite Team. Even more so than their exploits was the fact that all of them were women. Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra, the young leader of the Blue Roses sat at the table of her home with the rest of her team. It was late night and they had finally been able to gather together in response to a missive that had been sent to them. The missive itself was cause for some concern for them all, but they had been on a an official job when it had arrived. As such they had not been able to properly read it until now.

Gathered around the table were all its members. Gagaran, Tia and Tina, and Evileye.

Each of them sat with their arms crossed with a concerned expression. This missive was from a contact of theirs in the Roble Kingdom. Alicia Delacroix was one of the only people who provided them with news of the isolated Holy Kingdom. The portrait of Artorias Faye Pendragon was laid out upon the table. The painter had indeed captured her appearance in true, unadulterated detail. Her clothes and swords, her horns and scales. It was the eyes though, that captured Lakyus's attention. They were like nothing they had ever seen.

The rest of the letter detailed the woman in her height, voice, and presence. It also described those that came with her and even though there were no other paintings, they could all make an educated guess as to Artorias's entourage from the letter and the painting of her alone.

"So, what do we make of this?"

Gagaran looked at Lakyus as she spoke. As she was the muscle of the party, she was interested in seeing just how powerful this "Queen of Knights" was. Part of her wondered if she was like Lakyus, a leader who could support while her other members did more of the dirty work of combat. Then again, the swords painted at her side looked like nothing a man could forge.

Tia and Tina looked to each other with a rare expression on each of their faces: concern. This woman looked to be someone who you did not assail in any form or fashion and expect to walk away. If they had this feeling from a mere painting, then what was this woman like in the flesh? From the letter it seemed like she was actually rather short, perhaps only barely taller than they were. Alicia had even spoken saying that Calca Bessarez was nothing compared to this woman. The missive even stated that Renner would perhaps struggle in her presence.

Such a claim rankled all of them. Renner was without peer. That was certain, yet Alicia Delacroix in social circles who did know of her, was a shrewd and wise woman with a temperate and experienced husband. The woman was lower on the social caste, but her business acumen was spot on. She was not the kind of woman who would go on spouting extravagant tales and fancy embellishments. For such words as: _glorious, profound,_ and _overwhelming_ to be written about such a person from her lips and handwriting was in and of itself, concerning.

"It's worrying. They are plagued by demi-humans on their eastern front from what I hear. They have a general negative outlook on them all over the nation."

"Tch, narrow minded simpletons. They know nothing of the wide world at large." Evileye voiced her displeasure. As she was a vampire, she knew of the distrust from human kind. It was why she wore her mask and other items that hid her true nature from the world. Only Rigrit truly knew and did not care about what she was. As they were both members of the Thirteen Heroes of the past, she knew that humans would likely never be able to reach to the pinnacle of power that the leader of the Thirteen Heroes had been.

However, seeing this portrait sparked a memory within in her from long ago. During that period of time. The leader had laughed as had his friend in regards to being named "The Thirteen Heroes" by mankind. When the rest of the alliance back then had asked why they had laughed the both had responded.

" _The Thirteen Heroes reminds us of a group from the past that was made up of Twelve Knights and their Queen._ Avalon: The Distant Utopia _. They are powerful."_

"The Queen of Avalon . . . Is it really the same person?"

Tales had spread from the far south of a crystal castle with a princess attended to by her twelve knights. She had just passed them off as fanciful tales like those spoony bards. Nothing of substance. Yet now . . .

Tia and Tina glanced between each other and Evileye. Gagaran did the same with Lakyus. Did Evileye know something? Before the rest of them could ask her anything, the door to the room opened with no preamble. The group turned and Lakyus gasped. Evileye stiffened a bit, instantly on guard despite knowing . . . or rather . . . perhaps it was _because_ she knew who it was.

"Oya? Now what am I missing? I know that I've not been a member of Blue Roses for some time now, but such a shocked greeting is not what I expect. Well maybe the little crybaby is an understandable reaction."

Evileye stood from her chair abruptly, the chair falling over form the force of her doing so. An accusatory finger pointed at the newcomer with no remorse and plenty of embarrassed disdain.

"You! What are you doing here? Crazy granny! I don't want to hear that coming from you!"

The woman chuckled with a smile and twinkle in her eyes that far belied her age.

"Rigrit-sama! What brings you back?"

The old woman sighed and walked up to the table. She did not take a seat, but she did nod in greeting to each of them in turn.

"I was on an errand that demanded my attention, but a certain messenger during that errand had me return."

The woman looked at the missive and painting on the table. Her eyes widened a fraction in interest before looking at Evileye rather poignantly. The vampire flinched under her gaze as the rest of them laughed a bit at Evileye's expense. She was the strongest out of all of them, but Rigrit held a distinct edge despite her age and being human. Though with her magic and powers, could she even be considered human anymore? She was just as old as Evileye . . . at least they did not know who was the older of the two in reality.

"So, who is this?" She inquired as she gestured to the painting. Lakyus was quick to answer her senior.

"Rigrit-sama. This woman has shown up in the Holy Roble Kingdom off of their western coast. She is said to have come from a castle city with a massive crystal tower and is called the . . ."

"Queen of Knights."

Rigrit's hard voice held a certain awe to it that stopped Lakyus dead in her words. The others turned to her as one with wide eyes. In all their time in her presence, they had never heard such awed or reverent words. They also knew that she had no powers of telepathy despite her age and wisdom, much less magical prowess. Evileye merely nodded in confirmation.

"What? How did you know? You didn't read the missive!" Gagaran balked.

Rigrit clenched her jaw tight. She had been present for the Argland Council State's meeting and heard the claims from the representatives sent from around the continent. She had heard about the adamantite team Darkness and had suspicions but the mention of the Crimson Swordsman and the Queendom of Avalon had caught her main attention. She was asked by Platinum Dragon Lord to meet with the Queendom as a neutral party and gather information, but this just changed everything.

As a member of the Thirteen Heroes as well, she knew all too well how humanity had erased or denied all records of the plethora of members that actually made up the group. In truth, they had been far more than just "Thirteen Heroes", but only thirteen of them had been humans, herself included. The rest had been erased or censored from the history books. It was something that had rankled her to no end. Especially how she was a master of necromancy and defied the aging process of humankind.

"You would do well to remember that I was a part of the Thirteen Heroes Gagaran, or have you developed your physic to the point of sacrificing your mind like a berserker? Ho! That would be quite the sight indeed! Hahah!"

Gagaran frowned at the jab, but didn't complain. Compared to Rigirt, who was a living legend, she was nothing. She knew her place in that regard. Magic was feared and rightly so. No matter how strong she became, magic could always end her faster than any blade could. Rigrit's magic was terrifying when she was serious. Yet even with her power, Rigrit understood her own limits. She did not fight certain creatures and had stressed that there were things out there that no one should ever provoke.

"Ugh . . . fine. But seriously . . . how did you know?"

Lakyus giggled at Gagaran being put in her place. It was an aspect of Rigrit that she greatly admired. The older woman had a mischievous and playful side that she was not afraid of showing. Her sharp wit and confident grin was something that continued to inspire her to keep going as an adventurer.

Rigrit sighed and finally took a seat. Her hands reached out to the parchment holding the portrait of Artorias upon its face. Taking it in both hands, her eyes took in the details despite becoming slightly unfocused. She recalled the words spoken between Platinum Dragon Lord and the leader of the Thirteen Heroes so long ago.

The woman painted here was nearly identical save she did not wear the armor that the leader and his friend had spoken of back then. The swords however, were exactly as they had described. This could not be mere coincidence. She remembered the adoration and awe in which they both spoke of Avalon's ruler and her knights twelve. Stronger than their leader? He was incredibly powerful, as was his friend. Losing them both had been a horrible blow. It was another reason that she held the armor that Platinum Dragon Lord had controlled as her friend more than the Dragon Lord himself. If he himself had been present, then maybe the two of them would not have killed each other. But hindsight was perfect in that regard. She had thought she had buried that hatchet, but then that vampire who had put a hole in that armor appeared.

They had discussed the possibility of another set of powerful groups appearing and threatening the balance of the world once again. However, it seemed like this time, there were far more than before. Far more and even more scattered about than previous moments in history. As concerning as this was, she found this particular development rather interesting. To think that such a group with such firm acknowledgement of power from the leader of the Thirteen Heroes would actually appear in her lifetime. She was most certainly intrigued.

"I had heard of this Queen of Knights from the leader of the Thirteen Heroes back then." The group save for Evileye perked.

Lakyus leaned forward in her chair. She was always eager to hear of the old tales, especially if they came from a credible source. What could be more credible than a living legend?

"Oh? Someone that the leader knew?"

"He did not know them personally. He did know of them through what he called 'The Wars'."

The way that Rigrit said "The Wars" made them tense. The woman set down the painting and began to explain what she had been regaled by the leader of the Thirteen Heroes. Evileye, who had been Landfall back then, also knew the tales, but had not paid it too much attention. Yet now, she was fully focused on Rigrit's words.

The tale went into the night and by the end of it, Lakyus was filled with dread for the Holy Roble Kingdom. The policies of the Holy Kingdom would spark war . . .

And it would be their end.

Wholly and utterly.

* * *

 **Lizard Man Alliance shortly past midnight . . .**

* * *

Zaryusu and Crusch awoke to screaming lizard men and shrieks of pain and terror. There was splashing all around them. The sound of combat also rang out. What was going on?! As each of them left their houses, their tails went straight as a razor in shock and horror. The missing cavaliers were rampaging through the alliance camp! Young lizard men children and non-combatant females alike were being killed by the skeletal riders. The rapid ker-splash of hooves in marshy land behind them made them both turn to see one of the undead riders bearing down on them, spear leveled.

A resounding crack of breaking bone shocked them out of their surprised stupor as Juju obliterated the rider's skull with a well placed shot from his sling. The rider fell to the muddy ground just short of the two love bird lizard men. Juju of the Small Fang tribe hurried over to them.

"Hey! That was close! What are you doing? Grab Frost Pain! That commander sent his forces around the Great Lake and attacked us from the north! Now we're being attacked on two sides!"

"What?!" Zaryusu cringed at their grievous oversight before running back into his home and retrieving the treasure of the lizard men. Frost Pain in hand, they began assisting the members of the alliance that were fighting the rampaging undead horsemen.

As they ran around, the damages were clear. The huts on their stilts were being set ablaze with torches and in the chaos, the stilts were actually a detriment to their defense. Some of the houses were tall enough to allow riders to simply pass under them, lighting them by mere proximity.

It also allowed them to charge with less obstacles, running down fleeing lizard men without pause. Even though the riders were massively outnumbered, the chaos of the night combined with their mobility despite the marshy ground played in their favor.

The warriors were busy trying to both fight and save their kin at the same time amid the death and flames of their homes. Those that were able to rally quickly enough had clustered instinctively around priests. It was something done of survival instinct rather than pre-organized military formations.

Juju noted the groups needed back up and separated from Crusch and Zaryusu. His aim and shots decimated each skeletal warrior with pinpoint accuracy and power. The groups they found were in good hands.

An agonized scream met their ears from above before a flaming lizard man fell to the ground from his home. A loud splash did nothing to extinguish the flames as they were covered in mud and filthy water from his impact right beside them. The still burning corpse sent dread through them both as his scales charred and peeled from his body.

A shriek got their attention and they saw a young lizard man skewered from below as a rider rode under another home. It twirled him about in the air before slamming him into the ground, cracking his neck in two. The rider then rounded on them and charged. Zaryusu raised Frost Pain in anger and knocked the offending rusty spear away before reaching up and yanking the skeleton from the mount and shattering its skull with a chop of the treasure of the lizard men. The undead horse kept going, oblivious to its lost rider.

Glancing back at the flaming corpse of their kin, he gasped. The fire still burned through the waters despite having fully covering the lizard man when he impacted the earth.

This was magical fire! Water normally washed away and smothered flames, but magical elements did not obey the normal laws of nature and could therefore, incinerate water soaked items unless the water was also magical.

"Zaryusu . . . this is the work of a magic caster!"

Shattering another horseman with the icy blade of Frost Pain, Zaryusu wondered what was going on. The horsemen were a threat, certainly now that they were among their homes and non-combatant members, but what was fighting them on the other side of the mud wall? As they made their way through the frenzied, confused, and terrified of their kin, an explosion sent a number of watchmen on the wall flying. Charred dead and frozen in pain, Zaryusu felt a chill in his gut.

A magic caster who could wield the Tier III spell [ _Fireball_ ].

He could see Zenberu Gugu and the others, including her brother Sashuryu Shasha at the base of the wall, out of sight from the magic caster beyond. They had a plethora of shattered undead around them. Zenbel had swept two of the riders and their horses into nothing but scattered bones with his dwarven made halberd.

"Damn! They have an Elder Lich!"

Zenbel's words made Zaryusu cringe. He had heard about Elder Liches during his time as a Traveler. Spell casters who were immensely dangerous. Even the priests of the alliance were not able to combat such a threat with the difference in magical force. Another fiery conflagration ended another unfortunate sentry as he tried to rise up to take a shot.

"How far away is it?"

Zenbel shook his head.

"Too far. It would take too long and that undead would kill us all before we made it to striking range."

They would need a shield so strong as to repel spell after spell, but such a defensive implement was impossible. How would they get around this threat? It was then that Zenbel and Zaryusu realized something they had both learned from their time as Travelers.

"We don't need to go to it. We make it come to us! Quickly, lay waste to all the undead horsemen as fast as you can! Withdraw the sentries from the wall entirely!"

Shashuryu looked at his brother incredulously. His tail slapped his brother in the leg and he startled at the act.

"Are you crazed brother?! Abandon the wall? And you, Zenbel? Are you just as crazed?"

Zenbel turned with an indifferent shrug before smashing another incoming rider to useless refuse. Crusch also looked to Zaryusu and Zenbel with a bit of trepidation, her own white tail swaying back and forth in nervous apprehension. It was Kyuku Zuzu that broke that tension with a smack of his tail in the watery ground.

"Lure."

At that word, the unspoken idea of Zenbel and Zaryusu made a lot more sense. Why make the dangerous and suicidal charge when you could make them come to you instead? Surely it could not cast that magic at point blank for risk of hurting itself. A fine idea! Shashuryu nodded and motioned for the sentries to fall back and instead focus on the attackers within the confines of their camp.

As they began to do so, he looked to the two Travelers.

"If this works, then everyone will have to change their views on Travelers as a whole. Let's make this quick then!"

They all let loose war cries and began to scatter in effort to finish off the skeletal riders as swiftly as they could.

* * *

Outside the wall, Iguvua frowned as the resistance of the lizard men on the wall completely vanished.

"What are they doing? Have they realized the uselessness in fighting my power? Hmm."

He proceeded onward, the Blood Meathulks guarding him proceeded ahead of him by several feet. He could not wait to see the expressions of the impudent upstarts at his power.

"Oh how I will enjoy this!"

He took his time approaching the camp of the lizard man alliance. His twisted and distorted visage was covered in glee at the anticipation.

In the distance, Esdeath had come to the very edge of the tree line. She noticed the utter lack of defenders and frowned. If the display of the swamp elementals was any indication to her, these lizard men had another card up their sleeves. What was it though?

As the elder lich approached, she realized the issue and could not help but smile. It was a trap. So obvious, yet for someone so focused on sowing terror and relishing in it, Iguvua did not even have the thought pass through his undead intellect.

She wondered if Cocytus would notice this or not.

 _Oh well, if he does then bravo. If not, this should be an intriguing development._

Zaryusu fought harder than he ever had in his life. The lizard man knew what could tip the balance of this fight, but he needed to get to him first. Crusch was following him, giving him magical assistance all the while. She was beginning to breath hard from the physical exertion.

"Zaryusu! What are you doing?"

"Getting our trump card!"

Zenbel and the others fought fang and claw to clear the riders from their homes. Desperate cries of help left the maws of young ones and dying moans covered other areas. Yet despite all of this despair inducing environment, they fought on. For their families and loved ones, for their very existence.

As the groups of riders began to petter out, they began gathering the remnants of their homes and other debris to cast up as obstacles and hiding points within the burning ruins of their homes. Shashuryu had all of the able bodied warriors and priests begin their preparations for guerrilla warfare on the magic caster. If this lich was the commander, this would be their only chance to kill it. All those around them agreed to it. The sheer numbers and close quarters combat would ensure that this magic caster would fall, but the real question at the back of their minds was unified.

How many would die before that happened?

It was then, that the heavy splashes of something large drew their attention. Zaryusu had arrived back. With him was Crusch who was on the back of Rororo. Their trump card had arrived.

It was only a matter of time now.

Iguvua entered past the walls with a blast of magic. The Blood Meathulks passed through first and their presence immediately made the lizard men in hiding despair a bit. The magic caster was protected. This would make things much harder. One of the hiding defenders lost his composure and rushed toward the undead with all the speed he could muster.

It was pointless as the Blood Meathulks grabbed him before he could make it. They slammed him into the ground and proceeded to smash him into messy chunks. The gargling screams chilled everyone who witnessed it. Beaten to death by massive fists of bloody flesh.

While those two abominations existed, they would not be able to get to the commander of this attack. Juju and a few others popped up from cover and shot the two Blood Meathulks, the two undead roared and made to pursue. Iguvua cackled and launched another [ _Fireball_ ] that destroyed their cover.

"Go, slaughter them! I am Iguvua! Resistance will only bring you painful deaths. Submit and I shall make it painless!"

They merely shot the undead hulks again and fell back.

Iguvua had no qualms to sending the Blood Meathulks after these flies. As he proceeded to enter deeper into the village, he noticed a large boulder in the way. Ignoring the odd landmark, he blasted another group of lizard men trying to ambush him. Eventually he found the leaders of this pointless struggle. They were bolder than the rest of their savage kin.

"So you gather in one spot. How convenient. Kneel and I shall make your deaths quick!"

"Not today!"

Zenbel rushed the elder lich and Iguvua, began to realize what was going one as more and more lizard men came out of hiding with weapons in hand.

"Bah! Fleas! [ _Summon 4th Tier Undead_ ]!" Four Skeleton Warriors with far better armor and weapons rose from the ground and began to fend off the attackers on each side of their summoner. The warriors cut down many of the lizard men effortlessly, making the majority of them back off. This was a fatal mistake as Iguvua shot fiery spells into their ranks.

Shashuryu hollered above the dinn of chaos.

"Don't fall back! Don't make distance! Swarm them!"

The entire remaining force of lizardmen yelled and screamed, bodily tackling the undead summons to the ground even as they fell to magical blades. A few wrenched the undead weapons from them before smashing their skulls in with the very weapons they carried. Iguvua growled with indignation at the vermin swarming him. He fell back as he killed them in groups of four or more with [ _Fireball_ ].

Forced to fall back, he retreated to the boulder he passed earlier before turning and unleashing a very different spell at the chasing mass of lizard men.

[ _Lightning_ ] shot from his outstretched hand, the path of the brilliant magical bolts skewered a great many of them. Yet as they reached Zaryusu and company, Zenbel stepped in the way.

"Go! [ _Massive Resistance_ ]! Graaah!"

Zenbel took the spell head on. Shashuryu and Zaryusu rushed around their comrade as he collapsed to a knee. The spell did not kill him thanks to the new skill he had gained from fighting Zaryusu and Frost Pain days before. As Crusch immediately began healing him, he glanced up at Iguvua. Their plan had worked, though he was loathe to the losses in doing so.

As the brothers rushed him as fast as they could, Iguvua mockingly laughed at them and launched another [ _Lightning_ ] spell. The attacked whizzed by them and a feminine scream met their ears. Sashuryu kept running, but Zaryusu flinched and looked back to see Crusch on her knees in agony.

"Hahaha! Look and despair! You shall be next!"

Something inside Zaryusu, seeing Crusch in such pain, snapped and he let loose a battle cry like no other as he rushed back toward the undead that dared to harm the woman he loved.

Sashuryu swung his blade at Iguvua but the undead managed to duck away and jumped up to the top of the boulder before blasting him with a magical shot. The Green Claw chieftain grit his teeth and growled through the pain.

"You degenerates! I am Iguvua! I know not defeat!"

Zaryusu roared as he charged and leaped into the air.

"I am Zaryusu! You die here!"

Iguvua lifted his hand to kill the offending maggot.

"[ _Fire . . .!"_

"Rororo! Now!"

Iguvua did not know who he was yelling at, but suddenly, the boulder he was on moved! Confused, he took his eyes off of Zaryusu only to be greeted by four serpent heads lunging at him from the boulder!

"What?!"

The elder lich made to move, but it was too late. Each of the heads viciously snapped at him. Rororo was furious. His family was being killed all around him. His "Daddy" was relying on him! This was all that mattered to him now. If he could feel "happy", then now having more than one head was an advantage here.

Two of them missed, but the other two latched onto an arm and leg. Even as he suddenly felt agony as Iguvua began to drain him of his life via mere contact, he would not let go. Bringing his other two heads back again, he lunged at the undead that hurt his family. He latched onto his other hand and leg, pinning him in place as Zaryusu traveled through the air.

"You die here!"

Iguvua screamed as Frost Pain was slashed through his neck as the hydra held him in place, rendering him defenseless to its master and his magical blade.

With the last of his undead spirit, Iguvua could only barely realize his true death as his head flew through the air before landing in the marsh. Lizard men promptly went about stomping on his decapitated head.

The commander of the undead . . . was no more. The Blood Meathulks were then cleaned up by sheer number of projectiles and the addition of more swamp elementals by the remaining priests. Despite this, the losses and chaos still had their toll on them all. There was no victory cry . . . merely an alliance determined to see to their dead and wounded. They had survived. But the costs were beginning to take their toll.

The foolish mentality that they celebrated too soon was now what revisited their minds as they went about recovering. This was a harsh lesson, but they now knew just what disaster was invited in by doing so. They would not make the same mistake again.

* * *

"They did it! Bravo! Bravoooo! Oh they have a hydra! It's so cuuute!"

Esdeath cheered from the branch she was now standing on. She was smiling from ear to ear. The appearance of Rororo had genuinely surprised her to no end! A hydra! Even if it had an unusually low number of heads it was still a hydra. This was amazing to her. What a brilliant display. She clapped and cheered and pirouetted on the branch in celebration of their victory.

To her, killing them off was now completely off the table. They had far, FAR too much potential to be merely wiped out. Nurturing them would be the only acceptable outcome she would tolerate. Too bad it was not her call to make though. Was this the feeling that her Lord Draconis felt whenever he defended those he deemed worthy? Those weak, yet outstanding mortals who defied the odds? She could get used to this feeling. Oh yes she could . . .

Even if she did still view them as prey, they were prey of a different sort. One worth keeping alive. The icy huntress smiled and warped back to the strategy building Cocytus was making use of.

* * *

 **Strategy Room**

* * *

The minions and Cocytus stared at the mirror. The loss was clear. Iguvua had failed, fallen by the cunning and execution of the lizard men.

"MAGNIFICENT. BEYOND ANYTHING WE EXPECTED. IT SEEMS THAT ESDEATH WAS RIGHT IN HER EXPECTATIONS."

From his position, his massive compound eyes spied Entoma removing a talisman from her forehead. He knew that she had already notified Ainz-sama about the results of the battle. Yet for some odd reason, he did not dread meeting with the Supreme One. He had commanded better than he had feared and the lizard men had earned his warrior's admiration.

As he watched the leaders of the lizard men alliance shout their victory to the skies, he wondered what it would feel like to experience such a thing after a mighty struggle. Could he exult in such a victory in the future? That would be an honor like no other. He knew that he would face flak for what he knew he had to ask of Lord Ainz now. To destroy these potential demi-humans would be an utter waste.

"THIS SHOULD NOT BE WASTED. SUCH A SHAME."

He huffed with a mighty sigh. The frosty mist covered the strategy table as he turned to the [ _Gate_ ]. As he approached it, the air chilled and Esdeath appeared beside the portal. Entoma leered at her behind her mask bug before passing through. Cocytus nodded in acknowledgment of her advice and words that had been proven quite true.

"YOU HAVE BEEN MORE THAN HELPFUL. EVEN THOUGH YOU ARE CARRYING OUT THE FAVOR I REQUESTED OF LORD DRACONIS, YOU HAVE DONE MORE THAN WHAT I EXPECTED. I THANK YOU."

"Think nothing of it Cocytus. It was fun. I enjoyed myself immensely, though I do wonder how you will do explaining to Ainz Ooal Gown the idea of not wiping them off the map, but nurturing their potential now that you have seen it first hand."

"I SHALL REMEMBER THIS LESSON WELL. IF ANYTHING THEY WILL BE A FINE NORTHERN VANGUARD WITH TIME. NOW I MUST CONVINCE LORD AINZ."

Esdeath smirked. This would prove interesting as well. When Cocytus motioned for her to step through, she was a bit surprised, but nodded before stepping through before him.

* * *

 **Nazarick**

* * *

All of the Guardians save Albedo were waiting as Cocytus and Esdeath approached. Aura and Mare waved to Cocytus and Esdeath. Shalltear's eyes narrowed toward Esdeath, but she remained silent. Her own failure in raising arms against Lord Ainz himself was far more grievous than Cocytus's defeat, at least in her own eyes. She knew better than to chastise him because of it.

Demiurge frowned openly at Esdeath as they stopped among them. Pushing up his glasses, the light glinted off of the lenses and hid his eyes from those present. Esdeath could feel the scorn from the demon.

"Cocytus. I welcome you back. I do hope that you forgive my representing us all while Albedo is occupied with her duties."

"I HAVE NO OBJECTION."

The demon bowed elegantly. His frown deepened however as he spoke toward Esdeath.

"You however, are an outsider. If not for your advice, Cocytus would surely have won. You are not welcome here Ice Huntress."

Cocytus was about to retort in her defense, but Esdeath raised a hand to still his tongue.

"You can not care for my presence all you like Demiurge, but I am here on direct order from my Lord Draconis Brightblade. Cocytus was owed a favor and as such, he was paying it. I was glad to be of service to your peer."

Demiurge sneered openly.

"Then he paid poorly. A horrible investment."

Cocytus stepped forward. He would not tolerate such slander of an ally of Ainz Ooal Gown.

"DEMIURGE. WATCH YOUR TONGUE. LORD DRACONIS IS AN ALLY OF LORD AINZ HIMSELF. YOU WOULD DEFAME A MAN TRUSTED BY LORD AINZ?"

Aura and Mare glanced back and forth between Cocytus and Demiurge in a sudden mix of confusion and panic. Cocytus generally got along with all the Guardians, so to see him actually angered was disconcerting. Shalltear could also understand Cocytus's feelings, but she understood Demiurge's side of the argument as well. The question was, who had the better argument? It was true that Draconis was a friend of the Supreme Beings, so what did that make Esdeath in turn? She was rumored to be as strong as her in combat. That alone said quite a bit to her.

The two men stared at each other before Esdeath clapped her hands and stepped between them.

"Alright! That's quite enough of that. Demiurge, if you don't want me present then I shall excuse myself for a bit. Good luck Cocytus."

She waved over her shoulder as she departed down the halls, her boots clacked loudly in the massive corridors. Eventually she faded out of sight and around a corner, her footfalls lost to even Aura and Mare's sensitive hearing.

* * *

 **Special Post Chapter Special!**

 **I've had a surprising number of people ask me what the chronology of The Exiled is. So here you are.**

* * *

 **Chronology of The Exiled.**

* * *

 **Real World Timeline**

* * *

 **2097 –** Draconis's Real World Player is born.

 **2107 –** Draconis's Real World brother kills their parents and he in turn kills his brother. Loses all faith in humanity and becomes a child hit man known as The Sadist.

 **2118** **(20 Years Ago)** **–** Arcology War in Europe Breaks out.

The craze of Neo-Nazi uniforms takes hold.

Draconis's player is found by a Mega-Conglomerate recruiter and forced to fight in the war as a soldier. The atrocities of the war and many near death encounters makes him repent of his old childhood foolishness.

He meets Touch Me's player during the War. The two form a kind of mentor/student relation and Touch Me's player is saved by Draconis's. This results in his crippling wounds. In remorse and gratitude, Touch Me's player funds a kind of Veteran's Society for Draconis's player to take charge of.

During the war Draconis meets Mordred's player and the two are on the opposite sides of the conflict, the two men, seeing the despair and bloodshed and total loss of morality by their peers, form an alliance and thus, through this truce, they both survive. They meet Gareth's fiance during this time. The man dies saving Mordred from a tank strike. Mordred is scarred for life by the sight of him being crushed in his place.

Artorias's player meets Draconis's while he is recovering from his wounds saving Touch Me. She gives him the spark to keep going. She is a doctor and despises the system, but has little choice but to comply. Through his recovery and work at Touch Me's benevolence, or pity, the two fall in love and marry. Draconis meets many other veterans who survived the war somehow.

No one has received recognition from the war. Some of them commit suicide, while others rage against the mega-corporations and are offed to be kept silent.

 **2122 (16 Years Ago) –** The Arcology War comes to a close with over 50 million dead, with 21 former nation territories involved.

 **2123 –** Draconis finds an odd solace in DMMORPG playing, but cannot find one that keeps his attention.

 **2126 (12 Years Ago)** – YGGDRASIL opens to the public. Draconis does not join at first.

* * *

 **YGGDRASIL ERA**

* * *

Touch Me convinces Draconis to give the game a try, he does not at first.

Touch Me becomes World Champion of Alfheim.

Touch Me saves Momonga from Pkers.

They meet with Draconis, who finds Touch Me's theme of heroes ridiculous at first, but appreciates the sentiment. Draconis reveals he is a rare Dragon Race to Touch Me and Momonga and as such is screwed EXP wise. He levels painfully slow with getting killed not making it easier.

Nine's Own Goal is formed.

Falling out over the theft of the World Item: Atlas and what to do about the traitor who stole it, and the dark theme that many members of the clan begin to go down reminds Draconis too much of the Arcology War's insanity and dark past. He separates from Nine's Own Goal in pursuit of his own justice like Touch Me used to do. This prompts the doubts in Touch Me that make him dissolve the clan and latter reform it.

Dissolution of Nine's Own Goal.

Draconis gains a reputation for being a notorious PKKer and Solo Player. His reputation of helping the underdog makes him rather well known and generally liked, though many powerful players and guilds feel reserved or threatened and hostile toward him as well.

Formation of Ainz Ooal Gown.

The newly formed guild of Ainz Ooal Gown conquers the dungeon that will become Nazarick. Draconis never finds the traitor that stole Atlas. He does make amends with several members of the newly formed Guild, but does not join, becoming a guest at the majority vote of the guild.

Friendships are forged between Draconis and many members of the guild as well as rivalries and even a few enemies. Momonga keeps the peace between them all.

Artorias joins her husband in the game of YGGDRASIL and she invites the connections they have with the members of the Veteran's Society. The group rallies and becomes known as Avalon for the multiple heritages and home that it makes for the scattered, scarred, soldiers of the war.

Shin Yoshitsune Kai, Artorias's IRL brother joins YGGDRASIL with a Samurai avatar. He and his friends online form Bakamatsu Genpei. They take on Japanese legends and myths.

Gareth joins after she meets Artorias and Draconis IRL. She forgives Mordred for his part in her fiance's death and slowly begins to move on. The core group of Avalon become Artorias's Knights of the Round Table. They learn from the tragic and cautionary tales of the King Arthur and Camelot and do their best to act accordingly. This makes them a beacon for oppressed players looking for escape not just from the real world, but those taking out their angers on their fellow players due to the real world.

Phantasmagoria, the Rank 4 Guild in the game appoints Lucia Ignis Thundercry Second in Command. She is a Dragon Ascendant. She starts the information forum for Dragon Players and Draconis learns of the Dragon Ascendant Class from her. She considers him a rival when he attains the class and badgers him about it incessantly. This chafes Draconis for a long time. Artorias learns of this and sets Lucia straight in a 1 on 1 duel in the game, sealing Avalon's reputation despite their not being top 10.

Lancelot joins Avalon and shortly afterwards, becomes the 9th and final World Champion of YGGDRASIL.

The Guild Wars of YGGDRASIL are where the Avalon Guild make their names, becoming unmovable at Number 3 Ranked in the Guild Wars aspect of YGGDRASIL.

Draconis finally reaches Level 100 in the 9th Year of the Game's Lifespan. However, he does not fully obtain his gear until the final year of the game. During this time he has little contact with AoG, mainly playing with his wife and friends in Avalon. He is still not affiliated officially with any guild. By this time, the majority of AoG's members have permanently quit the game.

The Dragon Song War patch releases at year 10 of the game's lifespan. Draconis gains his special Rare Class: Emissary of the World Dragon and Rare Racial Class: Scion of the Divine Dragon from it. Phantasmagoria and Avalon are the only two guilds who side with the dragons during the whole patch. This earns the ire of every other player in YGGDRASIL fighting against the dragons.

* * *

 **2138 (Starting Point)**

Termination of YGGDRASIL servers.

Artorias, Lancelot, Draconis, Mordred, and Gareth meet for one last celebration of the game.

Draconis gets ready to visit Nazarick one last time to say goodbye to Esdeath, but the servers close before that happens.

All the members of Bakamatsu Genpei are present in the game at the time of the server close.

Everyone gets transported to the New World

* * *

 **NEW WORLD TIMELINE**

* * *

 **850 Years Ago**

An unknown Player Group appeared in the far off continent of Chrysanthemum. A great elder kingdom of the continent that Ainz Ooal Gown, Avalon, Bakamatsu Genpei, and Phantasmagoria would eventually arrive on is wiped out by the nations founded by these players. Those nations never once stepped foot on the continent to do so.

 **600 Years Ago**

The Six Great Gods appeared and introduced Tier Magic.

The Slane Theocracy is formed in worship of the Six Great Gods.

 **500 Years Ago**

The Eight Greed Kings appear and conquer the New World continent. The spread Tier Magic.

Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord predicts the war of the Eight Greed Kings and the Dragon Lords and also predicts the fall of the age of Dragon Lords. He is proven right during the war.

All out war against the Dragon Lords with the Eight Greed Kings, resulting in the end of the Age of Dragon Lords.

The Eight Greed Kings implode and turn on each other, killing each other off.

 **300 Years Ago**

Bakamatsu Genpei all arrive in the far South. They bring the nomadic tribes together under the banner of the guild and found the nation. Each of them found the clan that correlates to their classes and abilities.

Fall of Gatenburg after the Civil War started by miscommunication due to the flaws in the [ _Message_ ] spell.

Deep Darkness Dragon Lord encounters and defeats a Player.

 **250 Years Ago**

Evileye is born.

Fluder Paradyne is born.

 **240 Years Ago**

Phantasmagoria arrives in the New World in the region of the Wyvern Riders. Their Guild Weapon keeps them hidden from discovery. Lucia Ignis Thundercy is left alone after 100 years when the leader and her friends die due to playing short lived races by comparison to her dragon race. She puts her NPC Tsubasa into Cold Sleep.

 **200 Years Ago**

Rigrit Bers Caurau is born.

Hamsuke is born.

The Thirteen Heroes are formed to combat the Evil Deities.

The leader of the Thirteen Heroes kills his friend and refuses to be revived when he dies as well.

The Minotaur Sage appears and advocates strange, revolutionary ideas.

After the defeat of the Evil Deities, nations such as Re-Estize, The Baharuth Empire, Dragon Kingdom, and Holy Roble Kingdom are founded.

The Adventurer's Guild is founded after the fall of the Evil Deities.

* * *

 **Present Timeline**

* * *

 **Transition Day 1**

Draconis discovers that they are no longer in the game of YGGDRASIL. He visits Ainz Ooal Gown and releases Esdeath from her icy prison on the 5th Floor of Nazarick with Ainz as witness. He returns to The Lair with her and retires. The Guardians of The Lair catch up a bit with Esdeath.

Artorias, Lancelot, Mordred, and Gareth confide and calm the NPCs of Avalon, realizing that they too are no longer in a game. Artorias contacts her husband and focuses on caring for her citizenry with the help of her Knights of the Round.

Momonga holds an emergency meeting with his own Guardians.

 **Transition Day 2**

Draconis discovers Tildeus of the Dragon Kingdom under raid by beastmen. He takes Esdeath and Cecilia with him to intervene. The three of them put an utter end to the village's assailants. He speaks with a scholar there named Aarik and learns of the Dragon Kingdom and their plight against the Beastmen Kindoms invasion.

He asks Aarik to send a missive out to meet with the queen, Draudillon Oriculus. During that time, he learns more about the New World as far as the nations around the Dragon Kingdom and some basic history.

Draconis and his Guardians have a serious heart-to-heart after Esdeath and her peers speak alone the night before. He confides in them part of his past troubles and they reaffirm their loyalty to him.

That night, another band tries to raid the village of Tildeus at night only to be stopped by Draconis and Esdeath at the village proper, and by Akame, Kurome, Cecilia, and Luserina outside the village in a night time counter-raid.

Jin Lu Quo grows paranoid and worried and when they are assaulted by Draconis's Guardians, he surrenders. He and a handful of beastmen are taken to The Lair.

Meanwhile in Avalon Artorias calls a Grand Summons of all the heads of business, crafting, guilds, and common folk for the Guilds NPCs to discuss findings and report on what is to be done for the people. They speak of the town of Rimun of the Holy Roble Kingdom to their East. She reassures the people that Draconis is with them, but misplaced.

Calca Bessarez is contacted while at the Capital of Roble, Hoburns that a "crystal city" and island have appeared off of the kingdom's west coast port town of Rimun. Remedios dismisses it as lunacy, but Kelart disagrees and is intrigued. They depart for Rimun that afternoon.

 **Transition Day 3**

Momonga finally sees the outside New World for the first time.

Momonga jokingly mentions "conquering" the world. Demiurge misinterprets it as a serious command.

Draconis [ _Message_ ]s Artorias his report on the pitiful strength of the New World inhabitants thus far and advises caution in regards to the showing off of powers and abilities. He also mentions that Ainz Ooal Gown and Nazarick have been brought to the New World as they have.

 **Transition Day 4**

The events of Carne Village

The Merfolk meet with Avalon and its people and forge a friendly agreement. They warn Avalon of the demi-human prejudice of the Holy Roble Kingdom.

 **Transition Day 5**

Calca and the Twin Wings arrive at Rimun to see that the messenger was not lying at all. Remedios becomes paranoid while her sister is amazed. Calca grows more concerned over what this could portend.

Albert Delacroix of Rimun meets them and escorts them to his villa before explaining the past few days' events. Remedios angers him with thoughtless drivel and he ends their discussions far before sunset.

 **END OF LIGHT NOVEL VOLUME 1.**

* * *

 **Transition Day 6**

Calca, Kelart, Remedios, and Albert all view the island from the piers of the Rimun Docks. She then requests they visit the Adventurer's Guild in Rimun to acquire aide. There, they meet Alkaid Ushiwakamaru Kai. Alkaid refuses Calca on the grounds of the Adventurer Guild rules in concern to political affairs. However, she herself is intrigued and stunned that her homeland's legends about Avalon were true all along.

Artorias and Lancelot retrieve their personal affects from the treasury, updating First Brood Dragoness, Ratotosker of their transfer to the New World.

 **Transition Day 7**

Aarik's missive reaches the capital of the Dragon Kingdom and Draudillon Oriculus triggers the scroll's ability, allowing for Draconis to [ _Teleport_ ] to her throne room. He meets with her and they talk over supper. During which, the Prime Minister tries in vain to prove Draconis a confidence man with Crystal Tear's assistance. Cerebrate challenges Draconis to a duel against Deidre's warning.

Cerebrate and Draconis duel and it ends terribly for the Fierce Flash. Draudillon is convinced that he is the key to the salvation of the Dragon Kingdom and her people.

Mordred and Gareth spar before Artorias, Lancelot, and many gathered witnesses in order to get a feel for their abilities in the New World. During this duel, Calca, Remedios, and Kelart are questioned by an aerial medic of Gareth's Pegasus Knight Division. She reports to Artorias and after the duel, the Queen of Knights calls her friends for a meeting.

That night, Artorias, Mordred, Gareth, Lucretia, Crozwell, and two soldiers of Avalon meet with Calca, Albert, and his wife Alicia. The three are stunned by Artorias and her entourage. The collective from Avalon is not impressed by Calca's lack of unity for her kingdom. They excuse themselves and encounter Alkaid. Her admission of being of Bakamatsu Genpei stuns them, but the revelation that Yoshitsune, Artorias's brother had been brought to the New World, had a family and died breaks Artorias's heart. Alkaid is stunned to learn she is related to a living legend so praised by her ancestors.

Gareth informs Draconis later than night via magical missives of his brother-in-law's life and death.

 **Transition Day 8**

Draudillon and her nobles argue over what Draconis's aim in helping them is. Baron Whitepeak believes that Draconis is not doing it out of greed. But he is opposed by Lord Karlyle.

Draconis briefly mourns the loss of his brother-in-law before appearing before Draudillon. He reveals a portion of his power, quelling all doubts as to his claim of power. Lucia Ignis Thundercry is mentioned by Baron Whitepeak, prompting Draconis to ask Chronos to investigate as they spoke.

Chronos is immediately detected to his shock and regret and Lucia pinpoints Draconis and [ _Warp Strike_ ]s him. He fend her off and the two exchange a brief clash before everyone present before greeting each other after a long period of not seeing each other since YGGDRASIL's Dragonsong War.

Samael is ordered to assist Draudillon in awakening her Dragon blood and Lucia reveals just how long she has been in the New World to Draconis while in private.

Chronos discovers Zesshi Zetsumei among other secrets of The Slane Theocracy. He shuts down Thousand Eyes Astrologer, but she becomes fascinated rather than turned away.

Shalltear bids farewell to Ainz before meeting with Sebas and Solution.

* * *

 **More of the Timeline shall be posted in the next few chapters.**

* * *

 **Now, on to the Review Responses.**

* * *

 **Awayuki:** There will be other Primordials appearing in The Exiled. Please look forward to it!

 **UndeadLord22:** They will talk soon. Very soon indeed.

 **Ilireanwri:** Will she? Won't she? I look forward to seeing everyone's reactions to that chapter when I finally get it posted. I already have that in place, just need to flesh it out fully.

 **RyuujiVantek:** Oh, you will see.

 **Omegadramon2:** Can't say, as I have not been watching the anime since midway through Season 2.

 **rmarcano321:** Esdeath's covered in her character profile and the rest is: Spoilers, Spoliers, and Spoilers . . . moo . . .

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** I sit next to my fans and the Air conditioning vent . . . does that count? Thanks for the review!

 **MadDan90:** Funny how you are the only reviewer who has expressed anything in regards to the new character for the New World I (admittedly) vaguely introduced with Zesshi.

 **Gene Evernight:** The hard part about writing Zesshi is that despite what we DO know, there is also A LOT we just DO NOT know as well. She has the top Talent of all known in the New World continent, but no idea WHAT it is. We know that she is insanely powerful for a New World denizen.

As such, there are a plentiful number of liberties that fanfic writers have taken with her other than her appearance ever since she appeared in the anime, which I am fine with. I have my own take on her and her Talent and power level. Hopefully I can make it somewhat reasonable.

I do think that she is stronger than all the Pleiades except for Omega in terms of raw level.

 **Dimension Distorter:** You are the second one to comment on the mystery man. Heheh.

 **Generation Zero:** While you are correct in advising that I wait, unfortunately that would mean that the story of The Exiled would have to stop before 2019 whenever Kugane writes Volume 14 and that's IF he even gets around the Zesshi's powers and abilities in that Volume, which means that if I were to wait, we could be in for a LOOOOONG haul. Thanks for dropping a line!

Also, the Dragon Lords will be playing a far more active role in the story after a certain event occurs.

 **Espada-001:** Thanks for reading and dropping the review. Yes, Draconis will be showing signs of his own changes soon, and in a far more dramatic way than Momonga.

 **Evilsod:** You are not the only one to ask me about the Timeline. I hope that this helps you and others better grasp the chronology.

I have read The Bloodtrail of Alucard and I agree to a point. The Harem route was a bit cringe worthy. The savior aspect was also a bit much for me. Draconis and Artorias WILL NOT be saving everyone. Hells, they'll probably KILL or punish a few of them themselves. They are not perfect and they do have limits to their benevolence. If the first few chapters were any indication . . . Draconis can be brutal in his kills.

Thanks for reading and reviewing! I look forward to seeing you in the future.


	28. Chapter 26: Subtle Changes

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimer**

* * *

Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

Great apologies to all my readers out there for the huge delay in getting this chapter and its following chapter up. This past month has been very busy. No emergencies, but a hectic work schedule combined with the Anime Weekend Atlanta convention this past September 20th to 23rd.

I attended the convention and had a blast. Much of my schedule this month was centered around working a bit extra to gather the funds needed to enjoy as much of the festivities as possible.

Among these was the privilege to speak with (and get pictures and autographs with) Steve Blum and Mary Elizabeth Mcglynn. My childhood memories are complete!

If you don't know who they are, SHAME UPON THEE!

Wolverine, Spike Spiegel of Cowboy Bebop, Makoto Shishio of Rurouni Kenshin, among SO many others.

The Major herself . . . Motoko Kusanagi of Ghost in the Shell, Julia of Cowboy Bebop, Cornelia li Brittania of Code Geass!

Also, confirmed by their own words and grins . . . they are engaged! I wished them the best and joked that it looked like the space cowboy gets his girl in the end. Spike and Julia deserved it.

SEE YA 'ROUND SPACE COWBOY . . .

So many events and concerts, food and music, video game tourneys, red carpet anime releases . . . a ton of fun and then some. I ran into a number of Macross fans, I thought we were all scattered to the four winds . . .

Long story short, I spent much of my month this month saving and working for Anime Weekend Atlanta and now that it is done, it's back to writing!

Thanks again for all the patience! Here you go!

The following chapter should be out shortly after this one, promise!

* * *

 **Chapter 26: Subtle Changes**

* * *

Albedo sat beside the bookshelf that held the journal of Nishikienrai and flipped through the pages as she read. The latest entry that she was reading through was equal parts disturbing and enlightening. It was his recording of a conversation that he had shared with Touch Me and Bukubukuchagama.

 _The very fact that such magic exists . . . magic that can replay past events is both incredible and scary. Thankfully they are like illusions and not actual manifestations of the powers displayed within._

* * *

 **During the YGGDRASIL Days . . .**

 **Base City Tavern/Inn**

 **Late Night**

* * *

Nishikienrai sat in the lounge of the inn they were renting rooms out of. They had all suffered through the withdrawal of Draconis from Nine's Own Goal. He had been eerily professional about it all in both speech and execution. Ulbert and a few of the more gung-ho about playing the villains of the game had been glad to see him go. Others were more speculative and Touch Me had been strangely quiet through all of it. He, for one had been sad to see him go. Bukubukuchagama had as well, he was a very talented Off-Tank and conditioning a new tank would be hard.

It had been obvious to all of them during the meeting that Touch Me and Draconis had talked prior to the meeting and patched things over, but it was not truly a fix. Just smoothing out crumpled paper so to speak. He had remained behind along with Chagama-san to talk to Touch Me. Everyone else had left the meeting already. Even Momonga.

"Touch-san. What was that? I've never seen Draconis talk and act that way before. It was like he was some kind of uniformed corporate soldier."

Bukubukuchagama flashed a nodding emoji at both of them, showing her agreement with what Nishikienrai said. Her Blood Pudding avatar wriggled about as she paced left and right in an attempt to show that she was thinking hard as she talked.

"I agree with Nishi-kun! That was so creepy. There's something going on here that you know and haven't told us. Well Touch-san?"

Touch Me sat down at the center table of the room. Laying alone on the table top was a sword in its sheath. The weapon was Relic Tier and had been a gift from Touch Me to Draconis after a dungeon clear. The weapon had been grinded out to maximum enhancement and had been very well taken care of. That Draconis left it upon the table and renounced his membership was a personal message to Touch Me from his old subordinate that spoke more to him than anyone else in the clan of Nine's Own Goal.

It had been a firm, subtle warning that he was losing his focus and it would cost him in the end.

A sign that the man that Draconis had come to respect and look up to during those dark, hellish days of the Arcology War was changing for the worse.

A change that Draconis would take action against, not out of hate, but out of respect and camaraderie. A filial love and empathy that came from being like a second father, or surrogate older brother. Perhaps it was even a fear of losing one of the only remaining good things left in his life. Fear of seeing the beacon of light that he had been in the past smothered in this acceptance and negligence of morality in a game.

Mentally kicking himself in the ass, Touch Me sighed as he stared at the sword.

"You are not terribly off the mark Nishi-san. We were both soldiers and I was his superior officer. I ran a tight ship and he was a cynical, sardonic youth with an evil, sadistic streak that would make the members of our cabal sick with the things he's done."

Question mark and surprised facial emoji shot out around both the other players. Nishikienrai put up a nervous emoji and held his hands up in an apologetic gesture. This was obviously an extremely personal problem between the two men and he had just grabbed the tiger's tail.

"Soldiers . . . like from the War? Oh shit . . . but you said that you were a . . ."

"I know what I said Nishi-kun. That is true. We've all gone our own ways from that life, but Draconis has lived the kind of 'evils' that Ulbert and the others dream of. I was not joking when I said that he had grown up as a sadistic, evil youth. The war changed that in him, but the price he paid to turn from that life was brutal. He told me that I was the first man he had ever met that lived what he preached. A ray of light in his darkness. Ha. I really have forgotten my own Code."

The pitied tone Touch Me spoke with made the other two members of the clan look at each other in deep concern. They had _never_ heard him so down. Bukubukuchagama moved beside Touch Me and looked at him as if trying to see the man beneath the armor.

"So the reason he's so against all of this 'evil' role play is because . . . ?"

Touch Me looked at them and gave them a negatively shaking head emoji as a warning.

"I firmly believe that he's is taking the high road in a serious effort to not return to the life he once lead. War changes everyone, very few go into it and come out the other side changed for the better. Draconis was one of those. It made him realize just how petty his old beliefs were and that it would only destroy him. To him it is not a joke or something to laugh about."

Chagama plastered a confused and frustrated emoji side by side.

"So you obviously know him. Who is he?"

"You do not want to know that Chagama-san. I assure you. Or did you forget that we do not speak our real names in this game?"

The two players shuddered at the thought. Who had they really been playing with?

* * *

 **Current Time**

 **Ainz's Office**

* * *

" _ **I shudder to think of the kind of man Touch Me mentioned that day. Whenever he appeared and fought us, I made a point to carefully watch his movements. Whenever he was PKK'ing, if the opponents he was facing were flaunting their 'evil', his whole strategy and execution changed. All the flashiness would stop and I saw nothing but cold-blooded murder. Vital, critical locations struck with little error and a brutal efficiency that makes**_ **me** ** _stand up and pay attention. If they did not have vital points due to being non-human, he became an unrelenting force of nature and overwhelmed them with a level of viciousness that I have never seen in PvP. Touch Me mentioned that they were soldiers, but if you shouted that you were PK'ing just to be 'evil' . . . . he became absolutely merciless. Is that what they meant by 'true terror'?"_**

Albedo shivered. An evil man? Draconis? A man that had turned from his evil ways because of Lord Touch Me and admired him for it? This was all too confusing and she shut the journal in confusion and frustration. From what she knew of Draconis, he was a man with a strict Code.

"Is there some kind of condition that triggers the evil within him? If so, what could that possibly be?"

Perhaps the next time she saw him she should take the time to actually sit down and speak with him. A truly serious conversation with the dragon would help her clear her thoughts on The Exiled. However she went about it, there was one thing she was certain of: he was dangerous.

Setting aside Nishikienrai's journal, she picked up an exceedingly ancient tome. Wiping the grim from the cover, she frowned.

In delving deeper into the history books and records of Ainz Ooal Gown and even further to the exceedingly rare and hidden tomes of Nine's Own Goal that she had the Seven Blade Assassins dig up; she had found a gem in the rough. A dead certain record of the roster of Nine's Own Goal. She turned the pages of the dusty old tome and found what she was looking for. A page on Draconis Brightblade.

The page opposite however, drew her attention. A candidate for Nine's Own Goal: Brute Granmeyer. An angry red line dashed the name in half horizontally. In the tiny space written in above the name of the candidate was one word: _**Traitor**_.

"Is this man the one that stole [ _Atlas_ ] from them?"

Before she could read more into the two pages, she heard the door open and close behind her.

"Albedo. What are you reading?"

Hastily setting the tome to the side, she stood and bowed to Ainz as he approached her at the desk. Her wings fluttered nervously, their feathers shuffling and making a swishing noise. Practically boring lasers into the carpet with her eyes, she spoke quickly with clipped tones.

"Lord Ainz! My apologies, the meeting with the Guardians is approaching and I was distracted. I am truly sorry! I will go and arrange the audience with you immediately!"

Ainz stuttered a bit at her rapid fire stream of apologies and appeasements. Albedo zoomed by him and out the door, a few of her dark feathers fell on the floor as she did so. Half turning, he placed a hand to his chin in confusion.

 _What was that about? Well at least she did not try and glomp me this time. Yeesh . . ._

He made his way around the desk and glanced at the tome that she had left open on the desk.

"What was she looking at?" He took a careful look at the pages left exposed and felt a part of his non-existent gut drop out from him. "Oh . . . Granmeyer . . . _that_ bastard."

His voice ground as he recalled his own outrage at Granmeyer's theft of [ _Atlas_ ]. He had been one of those along side Nishikienrai, Bukubukuchagama, Tabula, and Takemikazuchi who wanted to go after the douche that lied and stole from them. They had saved him with Touch Me from Player Killers and offered to help the guy gain levels and equipment. The plan had been to make use of the World Item to find the best, optimized dungeons for their levels and gain equipment and experience in the most efficient way as possible. After all, the death toll was harsh. Granted . . . experience was relatively easy to regain, but for someone like Draconis who was one of the few with a ludicrous Exp. Penalty . . .

Their reasons for wanting to go after Granmeyer were not entirely altruistic. They wanted Draconis to level just as badly because the number of dragon race players was like the needle in the haystack. There was a level of prestige in having a dragon race member in your ranks. Especially if they were good players. Even human only guilds valued a dragon player, but many of them were hunted down due to the crazy experience bonus gained from killing a player who was one. It made the dragon players even more reclusive than dragons were already made out to be. He remembered one of the strongest guilds in the game had a dragon player in their ranks.

"Lucia Ignis Thundercry of Phantasmagoria. I wonder what became of her? She was well known in the community and she was powerful. So was the guild she belonged to."

Ainz glanced about a bit more and his eyes landed on Nishikienrai's journal. He picked up the tome and a part of him smiled inside. They were good memories overall, but why was it here?

 _Wait . . . Albedo was in a rush . . . Was she reading this journal? I guess she knows a bit more about our guild's past and its relation with Draconis. This might be a good way to show her that not everything outside of Nazarick is weak. I might be able to open her mind a bit more to the situation around us._

He set the journal aside and sighed heavily. This leadership thing was exhausting mentally. He could not get exhausted physically, nor did he require sleep, but damn if he felt like he needed some rest if only for his mind. Regardless, there were still papers piled in stacks upon the desk.

As he waited for Albedo to return to get him for the audience, Ainz took some time to pick up the detailed reports Demiurge had written. These projects of his were productive, but he did not truly understand what they entailed. Plucking a parchment sheet from the stack he began to read through them.

"Hmm . . . ? Bipedal sheep? Offered minimal resistance and could . . . choose . . . to receive healing?"

That part sparked both confusion and intrigue from the Overlord.

 _Perhaps I should make a visit? No . . . that would be micromanaging and I hated our higher ups at work when they did that! But if I don't tell them what to do down to the tiniest detail, then is that_ really _micromanaging? Eh, I'll just check in real quick._

With that, he made use of [ _Teleportation_ ] and warped to Abelion Hills as the door to his office opened and Albedo returned to retrieve him for the audience with the other Guardians.

"Ainz-sama? Where did he go?" She glanced about the vacant room before sitting in front of the desk in confusion. This meeting with the other Guardians of the Great Tomb of Nazarick was important, so where had he just gone to?

"Perhaps he found something? Perhaps Nabe had something for his cover as Momon."

* * *

 **Abelion Hills**

 **Demiurge's Ranch**

* * *

Arriving at his intended location, Ainz glanced around. It was like a nomadic tent village. Yet he could hear screams akin to the bleating of sheep. There were also cries terror every and again. Crimson eye flames scanned the area for herds of these bipedal sheep, but he found nothing. The only thing he could see were Demiurge's minions going about there work.

What he did see were huddled groups of goat and sheep like demi-humans. The Barfolk were already despondent or terrified as they were skinned alive and healed repeatedly. They were fairly certain that the meat they were given to sustain themselves was from their own flesh and blood. Many of them were beginning to become desensitized to the horrendous process. Granted, their tribe chieftain had made a fool's wager against the pin stripe suited demon and had been utterly destroyed. Now they were all fodder to the whims of the victor.

One bar folk was being bodily dragged to a large tent. He was kicking and screaming the entire way.

"No! NO! Not again! Kill me . . . KILL ME! Death, DEATH! KILL MEEEEeeeeeeee . . . !"

Ainz watched as he disappeared inside the tent. After a moment's silence, his screams rang out across the whole plain. Intrigued, Ainz entered the tent. The minions at the entrance did nothing to bar him entrance while bowing without reserve. Nodding to them as he passed by, he was assaulted by bloody canvas walls and the stench of excrement and vomit. Moans of agony accompanied by screams of suffering rang in his hearing.

The stench was matched by the squelching, wet slop of skin ripping away from flesh. The crimson flames of his eye sockets dimmed as he realized what was going on and what these "bipedal sheep" really were. Pushing aside a curtain, he entered the cordoned off partition.

If he had a stomach and a normal physical body, the man within the skeletal husk known as Satoru Suzuki would have emptied the contents of his bowels at the sight. Strapped spread eagle to a torture rack was the barfolk who had screamed for death. All of the muscles of his chest, abdomen, back, and arms were exposed and pouring blood.

A pair of ilithids were holding his head in place with their tentacled mandibles. They were not feeding on his brains, but regulating his adrenaline, and other hormones as a healer made certain that he would not die or become infected by the horrific exposure to the elements and tainted air of the tent. A demon with a pair of blood stained, jagged scissors and a scalpel took notice of Ainz and set down his tools to properly greet their Supreme One.

"L-lord Ainz! Such a surprise! Please my lord, I was not expecting you to visit us in person!"

Mentally recovering from the sight before him, Ainz focused exclusively on the demon. Coughing into a bony fist, the barfolk took notice of him and seized up in terror and the ilithid caretakers panicked a bit. As a result, the barfolk spurt blood everywhere and the healer, in his shock of being in the presence of Ainz, lapsed in his spells. The seizures made his body spasm and spew more blood before he died of sheer terror. His corpse was now a writhing, tangled mess. The death made Ainz think.

 _Wow, that was actually . . . disturbing . . . Though in battle it is not as obvious. I guess that's because were moving and constantly distracted by the other fighters. This is . . . this is different. I don't feel sickened . . . but these are definitely more than just "bipedal sheep". They are like the children of Nazarick in terms of being demi-human as well._

If he could frown, he would be as he stared silently at the mess of a corpse.

 _I wish Demiurge had informed me of this particular. This must be how a supervisor feels when he discovers workers doing questionable things in the name of the job. Damn it all . . . I don't want to deal with this!_

"Killer Jester, are these the bipedal sheep that Demiurge reported on earlier?"

The court jester designed demon supplicated low. His voice was a bit muffled by the ground, but Ainz could make him out clearly.

"Yes my lord! Their skins are tough enough to be enchanted when cured. Females are less durable, but purer and children's hides are better for magical scrolls and far more supple."

Ainz placed a hand to his jaw in thought.

 _How am I being so rational about this? I mean . . . yeah, I've killed already and felt nothing, but this is not combat. This is just never ending agony._

"Killer Jester, answer me in full honesty. Are all of these creatures intelligent as we are? They can talk and reason?"

"My lord! Commander Demiurge wagered their champion of this tribe of Barfolk the rights to use them in whatever manner the victor chooses. Naturally Lord Demiurge was victorious and as such, they will provide our parchment as per your demand for the glory of Ainz Ooal Gown!"

Ainz's jaw clacked open at the proclamation.

Draconis's warning about such evil themes and brutality popped into his head as well.

" _Evil men may be powerful in the beginning, but eventually the world turns against them as a whole, unified body. When that happens, they normally meet their ends just as brutally as they lived. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you Momonga. A little lost phrase from a brighter age."_

One thing followed his recollection of that bit of warning.

 _Oh crap . . ._

Coughing mightily into a skeletal fist, Ainz nodded. His cowl bobbed in time with the motion.

"Umu! I see! For the moment however, we have enough. Cease all harvesting and treat them well. Heal those who need it and take a break from your work."

The ilithids and the demon jester bowed deeply as they left the spread the word of their Supreme One. As they all departed Ainz gazed on the mutilated corpse in front of him. He still felt nothing. No hate, no anger, nor did he feel any disgust or revulsion. Holding his hands out before his eyes, he stared at them. He did feel some level of odd concern, but it was not about the fate of the demi-human before him.

"If this is how Demiurge treats other non-humans . . . how will those who could truly oppose Nazarick feel?"

He thought about Draconis's admission that the dragon's wife and some of her knights where also here in this New World. What of others? Did he really care if others just as strong as him or worse, the stronger players of YGGDRASIL showed up? He had really just wanted to spread the name of Ainz Ooal Gown across the world to see if others he knew would come back, but Draconis's words from several days ago came back to his mind. The odds of any of the old crew of AoG were close to nil. However, the number of players and other guilds that they had pissed off by being evil . . .

"Damn it!" Ainz swore. Things were NOT how they had been in the game. His aura of death grew dramatically and those outside the tent that were within its effect shuddered and cried out in sheer terror.

 _Nazarick's defenses are not active like they normally would have been. I farmed for days by myself to cover the expenses of the upkeep to the Great Tomb's automated defenses. Now I can't do that because the wealth is not limitless like before. Sure, I have more wealth that these paltry kingdoms here in this New World, but even that will not last if I have to keep them active against people who can actually threaten me and the Guardians!_

 _Sure, the beings here so far are absolutely pathetic in power compared to even the Pleiades Battle Maids, but as Tabula-san and Peroroncino would point out, there are always exceptions. The legends of this world that Draconis and I are discovering are obviously players. It is not **if,** but **when** we encounter other players. I cannot afford to keep all the defenses running given the costs of upkeep. Farming the material wealth needed in this New World to do so is impossible from the gold stand point by itself. That means we are not as strong as we were once before._

 _I think some concessions may have to be made for the sake of long term survival._

With those thoughts plaguing his mind, he made use of [ _Teleportation_ ] and left Demiurge's ranch and made his way back to Nazarick.

Albedo sat at the desk while looking over the specific details of the report made by Entoma concerning the lizard man conflict. A thoughtful frown marred her otherwise beautiful face. Knowing what she did now about the man . . . no, _dragon_ . . . that lead Esdeath, she had a more objective view. While she was still upset and disappointed by the defeat, she nodded at the strategies that Esdeath had introduced to Cocytus. Despite the differences of opinion and beliefs, she could respect and even grudgingly admire the stratagems and plans they made use of.

When Ainz reappeared in the room, she placed them back on the desk and bowed to him.

"Albedo, I assume they are ready now? Apologies, I had something that I wished to check on."

"Of course Lord Ainz."

Albedo approached the door and motioned for him to follow her to the throne room.

* * *

 **Meanwhile . . .**

* * *

Esdeath sat at the bar that Sous-Chef tended to. The martini glass she had sitting before her was filled with an amber and sky blue swirling concoction. Smiling as she chuckled at the coloration, she ran an index finger along the rim of the glass and frost encrusted the edges.

Sous-Chef tilted his head and observed her antics. She was nothing like Shalltear had been. She remained quiet and thoughtful, with the amused or predatory smirk peeking out on occasion. At one point, she had taken a small book from a pocket of her clothes and began to jot down notes of some kind. The icy femme fatale was content to nurse her beverage.

 _Why can't that be all of the patrons I get in here?_

As she scribbled in her notebook with a piece of finely pointed charcoal, a certain level of contentedness fell over her. This had been rather satisfying to be a part of. The lizard men would make a fine vanguard with time and care. She was currently drawing a picture of that hydra from earlier. The little guy had surprised her and she had been elated by its appearance.

Tales of Draconis and his allies facing down an ancient, nine-headed hydra in the past entertained her in the past. Even a few encounters with its rare and scarce variant cousins: Cryohydras and Pyrohydras! Oh what glorious hunts those must have been! Sighing blissfully, she wondered what in the world was taking that meeting so long.

* * *

 **Throne Room**

* * *

Ainz sat upon his throne in shock and surprise. His jaw left open and his eye flames winked out of sight. Albedo stood to the side in indignation as Cocytus knelt with his head bowed. Aura and Mare were casting concerned and worried looks their way and Shalltear was resolutely drilling a pair of tunnels into the floor. Demiurge ground his teeth together.

Ainz, in his glorious benevolence, banished the worries and shame that Shalltear had felt with acknowledging his love for them and her as dear children of Nazarick. Even he had shed a tear at such a proclamation from the Supreme One! But this was different! Part of him was rather glad that Victim had been allowed to leave before they had gotten this far. He didn't think the little angel could take it.

 _This sudden audacious proposal counter acts Lord Ainz's order to exterminate those insects! This is all that Ice Witch's doing. She's corrupting him!_

Demiurge squinted his eyes behind his glasses. He would have to do something about this.

Albedo processed the request Cocytus had made of Lord Ainz. Not wishing to exterminate them and instead have them become something like a northern vanguard for Nazarick seemed a bit insignificant to her at first. As a Guardian with extraordinarily high capabilities in administration and command for the Great Tomb, she began to seriously consider such an idea. It made sense to her when she really put her mind to it. She stepped forward and addressed him with a firm, but even tone.

"Cocytus, do you have any idea what it is you are suggesting? Even should Lord Ainz approve such a thing; what about the actual costs?"

Ainz glanced at her with a fair amount of surprise and interest. He had thought that surely she would have lashed out like she did with the humans of the Sunlight Scriptures for Cocytus's request against orders. Yet she was acting like she was supposed to: as an administrator and commander of Nazarick's strongest Guardians. It seemed like Cocytus was not the only growing beyond their set standards.

"THE COSTS? I KNOW IT WOULD TAKE TIME TO TURN THEM INTO TRUE DENIZENS OF NAZARICK. THE COSTS WOULD BENEFIT US GREATLY IN THE LONG RUN."

"But who will train them? Nazarick would have to expend its own precious resources and for how long?"

"IF IT COMES TO IT, I WOULD TEACH AND TRAIN THEM MYSELF. I WOULD TAKE RESPONSIBILITY IN SUCH EFFORTS AS PENANCE FOR MY PREVIOUS DEFEAT."

Albedo was flabbergasted, as were the rest of the Guardians. Even more however, they were fearful of Ainz's response. The audacity in presuming one's own punishment for failing Nazarick . . . for failing Lord Ainz's direct order!

A low, cackling laughter echoed throughout the throne room. All eyes turned in worrisome anxiety towards the source. Ainz was laughing! His shoulders shook as it grew in volume. His jaw rattled up and down and his eye flames blazed brilliantly.

"HahahahaHA . . . Ah, damn it. Stupid emotion inhibitor." Ainz coughed mightily into a bony fist before lifting a hand aloft in the direction of the Fifth Floor Guardian.

All of the Guardians cringed and struggled not to shy away. They fully expected to see a spell or mighty blow of some sort to strike Cocytus for his presumptions. When no such thing came about, Ain's words both awed and befuddled them.

"Cocytus! I am actually greatly amused and pleased at the growth that you have recently and currently display before me! Yes, what you have said contradicts my orders, but what you are suggesting to take its place is one that will indeed support Nazarick."

Ainz tapped the floor with the Staff of Ainz Ooal Gown to drive home his point. He did so as he stood and the rest of those present bowed before him.

"Listen well Guardians of Nazarick! From my time in this New World as the Adventurer Momon, I have learned that the wealth that this land provides is limited. As such, Nazarick's defenses are now drastically decreased from their full capabilities. While I do not believe that such powerful individuals can fully explore the depths of our home, I would rather not risk our precious denizens. You are all dear to me as the children of my fellow members. As such I could not bear to see you lost."

He descended halfway down the steps of the obsidian throne.

"That being said. Cocytus, you still were defeated. Your initiative is admirable and as such I will not punish you as heavily. Your punishment is to fight those lizardmen responsible for your defeat in personal combat."

"MY LORD. IF I MAY REQUEST ONE THING OF THIS COMBAT?"

Ainz paused. He had an idea of what Cocytus might suggest and honestly, he did not mind this. It was like speaking with Takemikazuchi again. When Ainz did not say anything, Cocytus took that to be permission.

"IF EVEN ONE OF THEM LANDS A BLOW UPON MY PERSON, I BELIEVE THAT WOULD SHOW THEIR POTENTIAL. I REQUEST THAT AT LEAST THAT THE ONE THAT MANAGES SUCH A FEAT BE ALLOWED TO LIVE TO BEGIN THE TRAINING PROCESS."

A bony index finger tapped skeletal chin as Ainz gave thought to that proposition. Normally, the one being punished had no say in what the punishment entailed. Given what Cocytus had proposed though shed a different light on the situation.

"You do not wish for the lizard men to be fully devoid of latent potential is it? Umu! I see you truly have come far in your growth with this mission. This pleases me Cocytus! Very well. Those that manage to land a blow upon you will be allowed to live to begin their training."

Cocytus nodded his acceptance of both his punishment and the terms. This would probably be the best possible circumstance given the boundaries he had just tested to the extreme for the Guardians of Nazarick. Anymore would be absolutely damning.

"YES LORD AINZ."

The group dispersed, leaving Albedo and Ainz in the throne room by themselves. Albedo frowned in thought as they all exited via the throne room doors. The massive things echoing in the cavernous space of the chambers. Normally a glorious thing to witness, it now felt oddly hollow to her. Was this the result of becoming more conscientious of the little things around her? Or was this the reaction of someone who knew all too well that Nazarick was not what it once was without its founders? Its creators? Regardless, she felt if Ainz was to leave them, it would devastate them all.

"EiiieEeEEE!"

She shot ramrod straight and her wings shot out to either side, shedding feathers this way and that as a skeletal hand on her shoulder startled her. Glancing stiffly over her shoulder, she swallowed as Ainz stared at her with glowing crimson flames. He chuckled darkly at her reaction.

"Did you forget that I am still present? What is on your mind Albedo?"

She about faced to fully acknowledge him and bowed deeply. Displaying a brave attempt at regaining her composure, her wings fluttered back to their normal resting positions by her sides. Something in that display when she was not full on yandere mode was oddly endearing to Ainz. Absently scratching a cheekbone with a pointed digit, he shook his head in slight disbelief.

"Lord Ainz! I am deeply sorry for such a display."

"Enough Albedo, tell me what is on your mind. And be truthful about it. You are the Commander of the Guardians of Nazarick. Whatever concerns you may have should be voiced. I do give your opinions weight."

She fidgeted a bit beneath his gaze. This was not like she envisioned enraptured in his attention. To be honest, it made her uneasy in an odd way. There was a level of expectation that she did not feel capable of fully living up to. Even more so as she read of the struggles that they had gone through before the foundation of their mighty legacy.

"Lord Ainz. I feel as though the influence of the Ice Huntress Esdeath will make Cocytus too rebellious. Though I can respect the martial teachings and strategies she has shown him, I feel as if she will lead him astray of you."

"Hmm. I can understand why you would think such a thing."

He really could. Esdeath was a NPC that had been created by White Lace, Blue Planet, and Draconis. The three of them had gotten along quite well and Esdeath was the accredited creation of Draconis as a sign of their friendship. When White Lace and Blue Planet left the game permanently, they had learned that Draconis was still playing and handed over all rights to her and the place as her master to him before saying goodbye. He had wished them well and promised to take care of her even though he was not a member. Ever since that day he had visited Esdeath regularly at least once a week in real life time. In game time that equated to much longer bouts of time by comparison, but he kept his schedule.

That dedication to a promise had etched itself into his mind deeply and was another reason out of many for his own dedication to keeping the Great Tomb . . . their home . . . ready for anyone who came back at a moment's notice.

"You need not worry so much Albedo. She knows her boundaries and where to and when to push and for how long. For all of her tendencies, she is not stupid."

"How can you be so sure?"

He sighed as he placed a hand on her head, the act made her turn bright red.

"Some things must be taken at face value Albedo. Not everything has an explanation. This is one of those times."

Even though she flt her legs turning to jelly at the sign of affection, she nodded and she did hear what he had said, though she was still a bit nervous about the whole subject of Esdeath. All of that aside though . . .

 _Uwaah~~~! Take THAT Shalltear! Ainz-sama will be mine!_

* * *

 **Slane Theocracy**

 **Cathedral**

* * *

Zesshi sat at the rear most pew of the cathedral. Many pious people gave her a wide berth due to her duality of white and black. She silently scoffed while staring at the angelic visage of architecture upon the raised dais that held the pulpit. All the humans worshiped the pillars of their faith that were the Six Great Gods. Yet those figures were not among them any longer. They had died right? What was a god that could die? Were not gods supposed to be immortal? All-powerful?

Given how her life had been for more than two hundred years, her faith was only in the strength and powers she could see and feel. Nothing she had faced had stood against her might and as such there was very little that could move her. She suspected that the dragon blooded scion of Brightness Dragon Lord could compete with her, but the strict tenants of the Slane Theocracy forbade them from fighting, much less sparring each other. She had studied the strongest of creatures written down in the annals of the libraries and archives long ago and committed them to memory.

Of all of these, the strongest of the angelic hosts, a Seraphim Empyrean had been the most fascinating and engrossing read for her. Records showed that they could cast Tier X magic, could fight better than any fighter, and possessed healing abilities the world over. Some of them took the appearance of other races to not frighten them, but their true forms were utterly terrifying to behold. They were signs of heaven's judgment or salvation incarnate.

It was these facts that made the news of a man who _commanded_ one so appealing to her. If that kind of supreme angel bowed to a man, then what was _that mortal_ capable of?

A strong presence entered the cathedral and the son of Brightness Dragon Lord took a seat beside her. His gray features and keen eyes did not turn to face her. There was no need for such a thing between them. If those present to worship had given Zesshi a wide berth before now, they practically dispersed like roaches with his presence in the room. It was nothing new. His inhuman presence was only barely tolerated by order of the Cardinals and Bishops.

"Are you still thinking about that man who has a Seraphim Empyrean at his command?"

She gave him a bored sigh before giving him a wicked grin.

"Would you stop me if I tried to find the man?"

"If the Cardinals ordered it, then yes. Though you know just as well as I do that they would never allow such a thing. They would make use of a large scale ritual spell to subdue you if it came to that."

Zesshi shook her head in apathetic disdain. Her white an black locks of hair shuffled about.

"You wouldn't want to fight me? Even a little?" She eyed him from the side as a dark smirk played across her soft lips.

It was his turn to scoff in disdain. He shook his head in mock indignation as his tail fiddled with one of his belt tassles. Part of him did indeed want to see just how strong she truly was. For all of that desire though, he knew the Theocracy would never condone such a thing. As Godkins, they were treated like a prized possession to never be allowed out of the Gilded Cage unless specifically called for. Even though he was a member of the Holocaust Scripture, he number of mission he had been deployed on could be counted on both hands.

To him, Zesshi's state within the Theocracy was a sad and lonely one. Both of them had been a part of the nation for longer than the current heads of the religious nation had been alive. Yet during all of the past two centuries, only he had ventured out beyond the walls of the capital, much less the borders of the nation.

They were not beloved by anyone. Merely there, and little else. It made sense that her stir craziness wanted a focus to vent on. Something about this whole situation just screamed disaster.

The two stood to leave when a small voice met their ears.

"Um. Extra Seat? I wish to speak with you."

Thousand Eyes Astrologer motioned to one of the meeting rooms down the hall. Zesshi smiled as her eyes narrowed in anticipation. Her fellow inhuman muttered darkly under his breath and walked away. He wanted no part of this little plot of hers. If the Cardinals wanted him to hinder or help her, then he would, but otherwise, it was best to steer clear.

Zesshi smiled wickedly as she placed a hand on Thousand Eyes Astrologer's shoulder. The blue haired woman flinched, but remained in place.

"My, but am I popular today. Two people in less than a candle mark? Very well Thousand Eyes. Let us talk."

The two women made their way to the meeting room.

* * *

 **Tove Forest**

* * *

Esdeath watched the proceedings from the branch of a tree in mild disgust. The presentation of the armies of undead? She could understand that part. It was a showing that the undead they had triumphed over were nothing by comparison to the meat and potatoes of Nazarick's forces, and even then, they were not the true terrors. That alone would have sufficed to show just how outclassed they were.

"Using a Super Tier spell just because you don't want to get your robes dirty? How petty!"

She watched as Zaryusu and Shasuryu were dominated into the marshy grounds before Ainz. Was that really necessary? Just from the show of force alone, they probably already realized just how pitifully weak they truly were in the face of such overwhelming power. As she listened to Ainz speak of the conditions of facing his subordinate, Cocytus, she bit her lip. This was such a farce.

The pyramid of Nazarick's mixtures of Guarders was a testament of hubris and power alike. She did not return to the cabin that was the meeting place for them when they left the two brothers in the mud and cloudy waters.

The hours went by and the only thing she could attempt to do was rest, but it evaded her. The feeling chewed at her heart and soul. This was not the kind of thing her Master would approve of. Eventually, a presence approached from the direction of Nazarick.

Below her, she could feel Cocytus's presence. Not bothering to look down at him, she growled in irritation. When he had told her about the meeting and the contents of it hours ago, she had been livid. Yet as the outside help, there was little she could do without sparking an incident between Ainz and Draconis.

"THIS IS NECESSARY FOR THE PLAN. I CANNOT CONTINUE PUSHING THE LIMIT OF LORD AINZ'S PATIENCE."

"Not the point Cocytus. The army amassed before them is overkill in and of itself. Making a monument of them just to sit utter arrogance. It's the kind of act a child would do to impress those without power. There is a time and place for posturing Cocytus, but before beings like the lizard men, who have no need and do not practice social hierarchies to the same overbearing degree that humans do? It is pointless."

He looked up at her lithe form. She was like a jaguar in those tree limbs: dangerous, limber, and beautiful all in one. He shrugged at her complaint.

"NOT LIKE HUMANS . . . NO. THEY DO STILL POSSESS IT IN SOME WAY THOUGH."

Seeing as she was not going to fully get an agreement out of him, Esdeath simply shook her head. At least he was being civil about it.

"Do me one favor Cocytus." her voice was all business. When he nodded, she continued. "Do not toy with them. Since you cannot back down from this . . . punishment . . . of yours. End those that fight you swiftly, painlessly. Do not make them suffer anymore than they already are. A proper warrior should do so."

There was a truth in her words. This was something that he felt was a form of kinship and respect that the non-martial existences in the world would never understand. The underlying mutual respect for those putting their lives on the line. Each warrior's skill and strength was there own regardless of the difference. He had seen their tenacity in the loss he had accrued by their hands. As a warrior, he could not help but respect them in that regard. It seemed to him like she viewed these lizard men in much the same regard as he did.

Realizing such a thing, he felt oddly pleased to know that he was not alone in his feelings regarding the lizard men.

Even with that, the punishment of fighting them by himself still stood.

"VERY WELL."

As he left her to silence, she sighed heavily and looked back out through the dense plant life to the slowly gathering lizard men in the distance.

"Life truly isn't fair. Just as you said Master. I just did not realize by how much."

"Oho? And what is this about? The Ice Huntress showing weakness?"

Glancing back down at the earth below, Esdeath mentally groaned at the sight of Shalltear Bloodfallen. The little vampire hopped up to the branch she was situated on and stood before her with her arms crossed in superiority. Nonplussed, Esdeath folded her arms behind her back and leaned against the tree trunk.

"You are not much better off yourself Shalltear Bloodfallen. So what does the lascivious daughter of Peroroncino want of me? I don't swing that way."

Shalltear flinched at the jab and sputtered a bit. Normally she had no problems acknowledging her sexual preferences or fantasies, but to be so blatantly called out and immediately shot down without any pause in both statements was jarring. Seeing her brief flash of frustration, Esdeath smirked and chuckled at the small victory. Stomping on the branch enough to make her point, but not break her perch, the vampire glared heatedly at the more endowed woman.

"I'm not here for that you Frost Hussy!"

Esdeath laughed at the insult and whistled softly in spite of the smaller woman's retaliation.

"Oooh~! Is this the true might of Shaltear Bloodfallen? Inferiority insults?"

Shalltear fumed. She was worse than Albedo when it came to their feminine bouts of competition over Ainz. Esdeath calmed herself and smiled at the little vampire battle cleric.

"Do not be so uptight. My Master finds you to be one of the more noteworthy of the Guardians. It is why I know how to get under your skin so well."

That gave Shalltear pause. Draconis found her noteworthy?

"What? What do you mean by that?"

Esdeath's eyes sharpened to points and Shalltear honestly felt a bit nervous. These were the eyes of the Huntress! Piercing eyes of crystal azure so clear and deep that they held you in place without having to resort to magic to enchant you.

"You are a True Vampire who can wield Holy powers. That alone makes you utterly unique. The number of creatures of the night and darkness who can claim such a thing are truly far and few between. Your sexual nature aside due to the preferences of your creator, my Lord Draconis spoke of you saying that if you were to grow more mature in mind and patience, you would be formidable indeed."

Shalltear frowned in thought. Never would she have thought that The Exiled had paid the rest of them any regard. Just how much did the man know of them? Did he have such analysis of all of them?

"I am already formidable."

Esdeath raised a ice blue eyebrow in question.

"Oh? Then how do you account for the blunders that lead to your fight with Ainz?"

Even if she was a master of the ice element, Shalltear felt as though she had been caught with a freezing spell. Her undead heart clenched at the reminder of her guilt, but she had already served her punishment! Being used as a chair . . . only Lord Ainz could think of such a thing! It had made her a bit excited to say the least.

"How did you?! Who told you such things!"

"Sous-Chef can be quite informative to those that don't drown in bar in tears of anguish and chug drinks they can't get drunk off of. It isn't exactly a secret in the Great Tomb anyway."

Shalltear sprouted a set of claws in growing outrage. Damn him for spilling the beans! Esdeath yawned.

"Calm down you lolita vampire. That right there is what makes you fall short of your true potential. You're too emotional. You think with the heart, not the mind. Temper that easily sparked outrage and think more objectively. Think about what your leader truly wants instead of merely assuming. Cocytus has already begun to apply this and look at Ainz. He is being punished for the failure, yes, but Ainz is letting him set terms. Why do you think that is?"

Shalltear retracted her nails and seriously considered Esdeath's words. Cocytus was indeed being punished, but the terms were so light that it was a practical joke. To be honest, she had thought that Cocytus would have been subjected to torture or worse, but instead was being assigned a duty that suited him, provided he was alone in the endeavor.

 _Lord Ainz said that he was pleased with Cocytus. How can Ainz be pleased with what he is doing?_

Her mind recalled Ainz's words. He was acting at his own discretion with the betterment of Nazarick in mind. But how could such weaklings being used as a vanguard be helpful? She just did not understand. Something about this whole situation was unusual, but there was little doubting that Ainz was oddly happy with the way Cocytus was behaving. Was this what they meant by taking initiative?

The Guardian of the first three floors of Nazarick shook her head in exasperation as she shrugged with her hands to either side.

"You are strange Esdeath."

"Ah, so you finally use my proper name."

Shalltear turned red in embarrassment and bared a fang in scarlet annoyance.

"Don't get so full of yourself Ice Huntress. You have Cocytus's respect, and as a fellow Guardian of Nazarick I would be completely blind to dismiss that out of hand. Just . . . remember that not all of us are as open to your presence."

"Ah, probably Demiurge and Albedo. Very well Shalltear Bloodfallen. I will keep a sharp eye out for his plots and her wrath."

"Hmph! . . . you're welcome." Shalltear's voice was a whisper so small it was barely audible as she made use of [ _Gate_ ] to leave. Esdeath managed to catch her words and smiled softly.

Esdeath settled in on her branch as the group reappeared and Ainz again took to his gaudy pyramid of undead soldiers. The rest of the Guardians flanked him on either side of the throne.

Off in the distance, she could see the lizard men who had obviously chosen to fight despite the promise of death. This was not a battle of powers, it was a horribly terrible "punishment" for Cocytus. As the Guardian passed by under her, she eyed his back.

"Remember what we discussed."

"OF COURSE."

As Cocytus trudged off to the one sided fight in his favor, she brooded.

As he unleashed his cold aura, freezing the weaklings in their tracks with a cold that only others like herself could inflict upon the living . . . she brooded.

The wearer of the White Dragon Bone Armor was easily cleft in twain. The stroke so pure, so perfect that he rang in clarion clear tone. It was a strike that any warrior, any swordsman would sing praises of.

Esdeath brooded, her arms crossed as she gripped her biceps in harsh fury. At the situation and even at herself. For she had helped bring this tragedy about as a favor for an honorable deed.

The sling wielder died to the ice shards that Cocytus fired in retaliation to the pesky pebbles that could do nothing against the auras and powers that the Guardian possessed.

Esdeath brooded and fell into anguish. Prey she may have seen these lizard men as, but not to kill.

Zenbel was decapitated with a slash so smooth and clean that nary a single drop of blood covered and stained the odachi that Cocytus had brought to bear. Still she brooded. She bit her lip so hard in displeasure that she bled. Sucking in the crimson vitae of her being, she cursed this fight.

She cursed as much as she prayed. Prayed that the brilliance shown by those remaining two would manage to fulfill the one thing that would let her move. Would absolve her of being restricted to the sideline.

Shasuryu Shasha was cut down in a vain attempt to flank and surprise Cocytus in the mists of Frost Pain. The warrior turned his attention back to Zaryusu.

Esdeath saw it . . . in the time between seconds . . . she saw it in Cocytus's body language. A fraction of a moment's hesitation. Zaryusu's expression that she could see also told her much. He had succeeded. He landed a blow. For a moment, Esdeath was grateful that at least one of them had succeeded. Then Cocytus's sword arm swung down.

 _What in the? NO!_

Esdeath exploded from her perch in a burst of energy. Her eyes focused on the God Tier odachi in his hand. Her fingers reach out as it began its path to the lizard man Traveler's neck . . .

* * *

 **Okaaaay. Reader Response Time! How long has it been?**

 **WOAH! More pitchforks and torches?**

 **Okay everyone. As I said before, I apologize for the LONG wait. Planning and working around taking off to go to a convention takes a lot of prep and time. That being said, here is the chapter and the next one will be done soon as well. By the end of this next week at the latest.**

 **IN TRUTH, this is actually been broken down into two chapters. This one was at 18 pages alone before the post chapter notes. The actual document had gotten over 40 pages in length . . . so . . . yeaaaah. Needed to break it down a little bit.**

 **Onward dear readers!**

* * *

 **RyuujiVantek:** Oh, just because Artorias and her Knights of Round are outside of the Roble Kingdom, does not mean that Ainz and Nazarick can't get involved . . . As for the dwarves and the mountains, no one of Draconis or Artorias are there, so . . .

 **MadDan90:** I've been reading your own work and like the current chapter. Granted, the erotic points seem to always make it in somehow . . . Granted, I'm nitpicking at that point. Keep it up.

 **Generation Zero:** You are not wrong in that assessment. Demiurge always struck me as "that guy" when it comes to evil. Too "smart" for their own good and it actually hurts them. The saying "so smart you're stupid" comes to mind . . .

 **Dimension Distorter:** Our Private Messages should have explained why I kept changing Zenberu to Zenbel, but I'll repeat for any readers paying attention to the review responses! It's like Samuel being called Sam, or Richard being called Rick. The spelling may change a bit, but they still answer to the nickname.

In the hard back copies of the Light Novel released by YenPress, he introduces himself to Zaryusu and Crusch, "I'm Zenburu Gugu. Call me Zenbel." It's the same concept.

 **Awayuki:** Yes, Tsukuyomi will indeed make an appearance, though I do not know exactly when. Well . . . I do actually know, but I do not know how many chapters it will take to get to that point.

 **Rmarcano321:** No The Exiled is not my most popular fic.

 **UndeadLord22:** Yes, there are several more Primordials. Look forward to their appearances!

 **Omegadramon2:** I hope this satisfies those interactions you wanted a bit.

 **Evilsod:** I also quite enjoy Blue Roses. Personally, if you all can't already tell, like the rest of the New World inhabitants more than most of the Nazarick cast. Officially, I only really found Sebas, Cocytus, Shalltear, and Nabe enjoyable. Granted, I do rather like the naive funnies that the twins Aura and Mare can provide to the table, but mostly its the New Worlders.

 **PervySageChuck:** NO, bad Chuck! No smut! None for you!

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Thank you very much! Though I am afraid that if I were to do such a 4th Wall Q and A session with the cast of The Exiled the reader base would hang me! I've already kept you all waiting for that Bloody Emperor talk with Draconis for over a month now . . .

 **James-Kit:** Sorry about the long wait. In general I don't desire to go more than about three weeks between chapters, but life happens.

 **Vaark:** B-but MIND BLOWN! In all seriousness though. Thank you for reading and enjoying. Don't be afraid to ask questions if you don't get certain details from missing out on reading the Light Novels.

 **Wacko12:** If Artorias had Merlin with her in the New World, Roble would have been Rubble five chapters ago.

 **SantoryuSekai:** *Only reads two chapters in and flames me . . . Checks Profile . . . Over 300 Fav stories and 300 fav authors and ZERO stories of their own? Ok then.

 **Sand Soldier:** But . . . but I wanna do cliff! Lolz. I do agree though, I need to have a bit more hard conclusive chapters.

 **KamenRiderEvol:** Heishin! Anyway, that talk will be occurring soon. Thanks for patience in that regard!

 **Hambane1:** Answer: YES. Kugane Maruyama is a Table Top RPG player who loves evil and overpowered campaigns according to his tweets and blogs. The whole of Overlord is based in MMORPGs mixed with Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder elements.

And YES. I am a huge Table Top RPG player and Game Master. A lot of my inspiration can be found in the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 Draconomicon for those interested in the tidbits of his racial powers. Keep in mind that the books of DnD and Pathfinder are GUIDELINES. A good GM and Player can twist things and create brand new stuff.

Right now I'm running a Final Fantasy D6 campaign. It's very much free form and hilarity ensues almost all the time with my group. Worth the social interactions in every regard.

 **Hercules8:** Thanks for dropping in. Hope you keep reading The Exiled!


	29. Chapter 27: The Price of Honor

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimer: Kugane Maruyama owns the rights and YenPress Licenses the Light Novel releases.**

 **FIRST AND FOREMOST!**

 **I am sorry that this has taken so long to get posted. When I posted the previous chapter, I had this more or less ready to pop on you guys the same day. I did not because sleep is a thing.**

 **The following morning, my roommate's wife decided to change our Internet plan and modum. She did not make sure that the change of plan and modum did not interrupt or cut off our connection. IT DID.**

 **On the day she scheduled the technician to come and fix the issue (Four Days Later I might add), Hurricane Florence came through and the vestiges of the massive rain and winds knocked our power out on the day they were supposed to come out and fix it. So no fix occurred.**

 **Three days without power go by. Power is back on. Internet provider states, "Due to recovery efforts from Hurricane Florence, we will not be undertaking scheduled appointments until after relief efforts are met."**

 **Another week goes by. We finally get it back.**

 **Enter Hurricane Michael . . .**

 **DAMN.**

* * *

Sooooo yeaaaah. I can't control weather.

The Lizard Man Heroes Arc comes to a close this chapter and then we are off to Draconis and The Men of the Kingdom Arcs.

SIGHS LOUDLY.

Yes . . . as much as I want to slam my face into my desk, I do have to give Climb his time in the spot light. If anything to at least address things like Renner and Blue Roses, and some New World characters that will better balance out some of the OP that is the Players of YGGDRASIL. Also, without showcasing Climb, Sebas Tian gets no time, and I love his character. Especially his inner struggle to do good even when in servitude to an absolute "evil" Cough AINZ. COUGH.

Those of you who have voiced concerns about Ainz and the denizens of Nazarick being quelled into useless place holders need not worry. Draconis has his hands tied in the Dragon Kingdom for the most part. Artorias and Avalon are dealing with the Holy Roble Kingdom, that much is true, but I think you all will be surprised about what I do with that.

Now, on with the show! Here comes to my ending of the Lizard Man Heroes Arc.

* * *

 **Chapter 27: The Price of Honor**

* * *

Zaryusu did not know what just happened, but he was not dead. Opening his eyes, he gawked. A beautiful, no . . . gorgeous? That would be the term they would use for her . . . human woman had stopped that ludicrous blade from decapitating him. With her hand! Her thumb and middle finger pinched the back edge of the odachi from the very direction it had come at him from.

She had not blocked the blade, but caught it mid-swing from the very arc it formed! She had _caught up_ to the speed of the swing and grabbed it with enough force to stop it cold, mere millimeters from his neck. With just her thumb and middle fingertip.

"Wha . . . ?" Was the only eloquent phrase he could muster from this display.

The woman frowned up at the Death God's subordinate . . . Cocytus.

"Here now, he accomplished the set rules. He landed a blow on you. Never mind that it did nothing. A landed strike is still a landed strike. You got careless. If it was a weapon that could actually harm you, then what? The conditions agreed on have been fulfilled."

Cocytus huffed. They had indeed laid down the terms as such.

"YOU ARE CORRECT. I WAS ABSORBED IN THE MOMENT."

Before they could say anymore, Demiurge's voice was heard from the pyramid of Nazaricks Guarders. Ainz moved his eyes in the direction of the Guardian as he spoke with clear disdain in his voice. It did not escape him that Albedo was oddly silent as Demiurge made his displeasure known.

"Esdeath! How dare you interfere with this battle! This is an affront to Lord Ainz!"

Esdeath returned the glare as Cocytus lowered his weapon. Two could play this game.

"How dare I? I am merely ensuring that Cocytus does not waste potential talent. Should not a Guardian's word be his bond to such a powerful liege as Lord Ainz?"

Demiurge ground his teeth together while scowling. How dare this outsider attempt to play high and mighty with him!

 _" **Know your place and bow!"**_

Zaryusu immediately did so. He knew this ability already, but when he glanced at Esdeath, he was stunned as she fanned her mouth that was wide as she yawned in disinterest.

 _What? How is she not under that demon's influence?_

Looking at her nails, she grinned and Zaryusu felt it. SHE was the predatory gaze that they had felt more than a day ago when they had spotted that blue bird. It was her and not any of these beings with the Death God. What was going on here?

"Demiurge, that commanding power of yours only works on those weaker than you. Those of your equal or better can and will resist it. Not that there are many who can, mind you."

The pin stripe suited demon grinned maliciously and pushed his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose. From their elevated position, it was an obvious act of condescension.

"You're getting arrogant, woman!"

Esdeath merely gave a look that seemed to dare him to continue on. Cocytus watched the exchange with a growing level of aggravation. They were in front of Lord Ainz and bickering like children. What kind of image did that give off to these lizard men?

"ENOUGH. DEMIURGE, THIS IS BETWEEN ESDEATH, ME AND LORD AINZ. IT IS NOT YOUR MISSION."

This reaction from Cocytus intrigued Ainz and his eyes glowed brightly for a moment. That being beside the point . . .

He slammed a fist on the throne that he was sitting upon. That made all arguing cease like a cold wind. Albedo could feel the emotion in Ainz's words. They were like a parent disappointed in their children's behavior.

"Deimurge. You would do well to heed Cocytus's words. This is not your mission. I gave Cocytus this mission with the order to act independently at his discretion as much as possible. He is doing so . . . and this pleases me to no end. Now back down or I will be cross."

Demiurge turned and bowed deeply in apology to the Overlord.

"My deepest apologies."

Nodding in acknowledgement of Demiurge's apology, he turned his attention to the Ice Huntress. His eye flames flared wildly.

"Esdeath. While I understand your reasons. This is also not your mission."

She bowed elegantly, and he could sense a certain level of true respect. At least for his position if not his own person. Either way, he did not take offense . . . he silently wondered why he did not to himself as she opened her mouth to speak.

"I will refute that claim Lord Ainz. It is very much my mission. Cocytus requested favor from my Liege Lord Draconis and as such, was made a part of this mission of his by his own request of aide. Aide which I render full well knowing that my Lord would have disagreed with this whole affair. Despite that, I am still my own person and as such, do not hold such a stringent moral code as my master." Her eyes hardened a bit as the words continued to flow from her lips. "Know that even I think things can go too far. These lizard men have proven their tenacity as Cocytus has brought before you both in words and now in deed. Surely a wise ruler can see that merely killing them is a complete and utter waste."

 _She even thinks like some of the others in the guild. What kind of NPCs did you and the others make Draconis? Even so! I'm in front of my friends's NPCs. I can't just roll over!_

"Umu! I see that you are firm on this. Very well. Cocytus has proven his point and worked through his punishment of combat. I will not destroy the lizard men. Your actions however are another story Esdeath. Even in rendering assistance at Cocytus's behest, one cannot merely ignore your actions."

Ainz stood from his throne and pointed to her with a long, bony index finger as he announced his judgment in full.

"You shall fight Cocytus. Should you last until sunset, then I shall pardon your act of aggression."

The two masters of ice and combat glanced to each other in surprise. Ainz continued his proclamation.

"It shall commence in the next hour."

Esdeath frowned, but nodded in acceptance and walked over to Zaryusu, picking him up over her shoulder and hauling him back in the direction of the alliance camp. As she did so, she lifted the icy chunks of earth that held the bodies of his dead allies and slid them along the ground to her left and right. As she placed him down on his feet just mere yards from the mud walls, she sighed as she formed a small throne of ice and sat down.

Unsheathing her rapier, she looked it over meticulously. The dark metal glowing with crimson runes pulsed slightly.

* * *

Crusch splashed over to her lover and mate, hugging him fiercely.

"Zaryusu!"

The lizard man in question stared hard at the woman before them. All his instincts roared at him that this woman was no less a terror than that soldier or the Death God. Something inside him told him that she was little different than a predator and they were all her prey.

"Is this some kind of game to you? With our lives as the prize?"

She paused in her weapon maintenance. The frown she directed their way did not match the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. Crossing her long legs, she reclined in her seat before turning a hard gaze at Ainz. The Overlord Lich had returned to his seat on his gaudy throne.

"It matters little to them. I see a fount of untapped potential in your people. They see you as wasted space in a land they seek to expand upon. I did indeed help Cocytus with his attacks on your kind earlier." She held a hand up and glared so pointedly at Zaryusu when he made to yell at her in outrage that he swallowed his words. "I _do not_ agree with wiping you out. If my master were present he would agree with me. However, as I was a prisoner to Cocytus's master and he was my jailer who treated me well despite my sentence, my lord owed Cocytus himself a favor. My assistance was that favor."

Crusch could not comprehend such a thing. What kind of powers were playing around with their lives? Zaryusu had heard tales and legends like this, but never in his wildest dreams did he imagine getting caught up in them. Esdeath pressed onward.

"I consider that debt and favor paid in full. Even with my actions seemingly being justifiable, I _have_ raised my head in defiance of his Lord. Powers that be will not let some things slide. Though I think that Ainz Ooal Gown is making me fight Cocytus to save face with his subordinates, more than being personally insulted."

The lizard men who heard her words gawked in speechless consternation. Zaryusu's mind was racing miles a minute.

 _Powers that be? Their superiors? Have the gods made this land their plaything? Who or what kind of person would have dealings and laws with a God of Death?_

"He called you Esdeath." When she nodded with a grin, he continued. "Why would you help us? You helped them attack us! Have you no sense of honor?"

The Ice Huntress of The Lair stopped her musings and preparations cold. The air around them chilled and he recognized it as the same kind of power that Cocytus had. However, where his had been combative, this was oppressive.

"Honor dictated that I repay my lord's debt for their not killing me previously. Honor dictated that I ensure that Cocytus learned as part of that payment. I have accomplished those tasks. As such, my honor dictated that the terms of your battle with him were kept. You landed a blow upon him that was brilliant, if futile purely because of the difference in power. Now, that very honor dictates that I act upon my master's teachings and beliefs to stand for you and yours, those who cannot defend themselves against a merciless tide that will consume without mercy. Even if it means I die in the process. Do not question my honor, twisted as it may be, Zaryusu Shasha of the Green Claw Tribe."

Her voice was hardened like diamonds and her gaze pierced his soul.

"Your victories have been from your own powers and adaptability. You have learned through suffering, regardless of its origin. You have come through this stronger. Unfortunately, your fight is against evil beyond compare."

Zaryusu had a feeling that this huntress's master was someone who knew what they were fighting intimately well, but was he good or evil?

"What of your master? Is he evil as well? Is this a territory dispute over our home?"

"He is dangerous, but he is good."

Her voice softened so much that it shocked them. Her eyes grew distant and warm. It was such a stark change that Crusch and Zaryusu glanced at each other in disbelief.

"Master is not a man to be trifled with, but he is not a cruel person at heart. He is extraordinarily patient most of the time. He tries to give the benefit of the doubt when he can, but not all situations allow for such benevolence. Is he evil? No, but he is not a saint. He will kill for his beliefs, he will kill for the sake of others. For his loved ones he would torch the world. Tormented is his soul, yet he is unbroken. How could I not follow such a man?"

What was she speaking of? They were so confused by her words that they did not notice her stand and approach them until she placed a hand on each other their shoulders. The couple jolted and tried, but failed to back away. Esdeath leaned in close.

"It is because he knows Ainz Ooal Gown that he does not destroy the Overlord outright. For they have known each other for ages. Known each other since long before they ascended to their power as you see now. Outright battle between the two of them would bring about catastrophe."

The thought of two such powerful entities fighting to the death only brought about flashed of death and destruction unlike anything seen. Zaryusu had not given much thought to the concept of a mutually assured destruction, but her words combined with the steeled look in her eyes assured him that this was no matter of "if", but that of guaranteed devastation.

"Now, excuse me. I must finish preparations."

Esdeath released them and walked away.

* * *

Albedo watched the Ice Huntress interact with the lizard men and frowned. She had no doubts that she was probably acting in a manner that her lord would do. Though her knowledge of what Draconis Brightblade was like through Nishikienrai's journal was enlightening, she was more concerned about the lack of knowledge that the fellow Supreme One of Lord Ainz had on The Exiled.

Certainly, there was a lot in regards to the man's personality and beliefs, but not that much in regards to the man's powers and abilities. However, knowing about his personality and beliefs was telling in and of itself. She understood this much at the very least . . . he was not to be taken lightly. The criticisms Nishikienrai had for him were many, but much of it seemed like nitpicking. The acknowledgements that he had for Draconis were surprising and more numerous than she had anticipated.

One thing that stood out to her more than anything else, was this: he was fiercely loyal to his friends and family. So much so that he would act against them if it prevented them from hurting themselves, but even he had a limit.

Was this one of those times? Was Esdeath emulating her master to that degree? It confused her. How would just tromping over these insignificant lizard men hurt them in the long run? Lord Ainz did not seem too worried about it . . . so why did she?

"Albedo."

Ainz'es voice drew her out of her thoughts. Shaking herself once, she presented herself before him.

"Yes Lord Ainz."

His skeletal fingers drummed the armrest of the throne he sat upon. His other hand cradled his skull. The eye sockets were devoid of their crimson lights. He gave off the feeling of apprehension. It was jarring.

"Have I made a mistake?"

"Eh?"

She was a bit stunned by the question.

"I know you have been reading the journal of Nishikienrai."

She could feel her toes curl in and her feet pointed inward at being caught. The wings on her back shivered and ruffled uncomfortably. His voice sounded oddly tired.

"I noticed it left open to page with Draconis and several others from our time as Nine's Own Goal. I guess Cocytus is not the only one doing their own thing. Let me make myself very clear."

His eyes glowed a bit. The crimson sparks in them made her shiver.

"I do not intend to force you to change who you all are. As you may have noticed in the journal, I am not perfect, nor are any of my peers. Does that change how you view me?"

She thought hard on that question. He was not wrong. The journal had revealed a lot about the nature of Momonga and many others of Ainz Ooal Gown, the guild, the legacy. Each page a different revelation as to the mindset of those that they considered perfect and unfailing had in reality failed time and again. Their esteemed leader was still their leader in her eyes though.

"No Lord Ainz. It does not in the slightest."

"Then understand this Albedo. When I ask your opinions, I want them regardless of how they might sound. As such, do you think that making Cocytus and Esdeath fight is a mistake?"

A frown marred her otherwise beautiful features. Part of her was appalled and furious that Esdeath stood against Lord Ainz. Yet another part of her made her wonder about how Draconis's followers also were like herself and the other Guardians of Nazarick. The real issue was how the rest of them would view each other.

"I think that a fight between them would be appropriate. Though I do worry about Cocytus as he feels a bit indebted to her for her assistance regardless of this affront to you Lord Ainz."

Ainz put an index finger to his chin in thought. He could see that being an issue. Regardless though he still needed to present a solid front for the rest of the Guardians. He would need to nip this growing problem in the bud.

"I see. Thank you Albedo. I shall take Cocytus into consideration after this whole thing comes to a conclusion."

Down below, Cocytus and Esdeath were approaching each other in the open area between the two sides.

"So . . . this is how this is going to resolve itself? A fight between the two of us?"

She unsheathed the ebony rapier at her waist and gave him a flourish and salute, her ice blue eyes stared at him through the elegant guard of the hilt.

* * *

 **C** **ocytus vs Esdeath**

 **Music of Awesome**

 **Nier Automata OST: Wretched Weaponry** **(Dynamic with Vocals)** **. . . . Play?**

* * *

Wasting no time at all, Esdeath dashed in, the ice they stood upon shattered at her feet as she accelerated. The frosty particles glittered in the light. Zaryusu and the other lizard men leaned away in shock. She covered the distance between them in a blink. Her blade flashed in a dark streak of ebony and crimson only to be intercepted by Cocytus's own. The two blades shrieked at the contact and the Ice Maiden dashed past several feet before stopping.

Cocytus turned half way to her. He knew she was fast, but if he had not been prepared, she would have landed that blow. The Guardian of the Fifth Floor of Nazarick took in the sight of her with her fangs bared and ready to clash. She wore a sardonic smile and a slightly crazed look in her eye.

 _A BERSERKER . . ._

She pounced at him, bringing her blade down in a slash that sought to strike down the opposition from crown to navel. A parry that answered the call forced the weapon to glide down the edge of his weapon as she descended. An uppercut from his free hands caught her as she landed. The force of the blow sent her into the air above him. Raising his inheritance from Takemikazuchi, he swirled the deadly blade in a figure eight pattern as javelins of ice rained down upon him from on high. Dozens upon dozens of the piercing projectiles shattered against his defense. The sparkling fragments of ice and moisture lied about the fatal maelstrom of magical frost that descended like a storm.

Those javelins that he missed began to form a fusillade of ice around him. As he noticed this, he turned in a full circle, lashing out at the offending obstacles, the attack cleaving them clean in two as smooth as silk. Completing his counter of her plan to surround him, he looked back up toward her only to see nothing.

"What in the . . . ?"

Zaryusu's mutter of disbelief was the only warning Cocytus received before he took in the sight of Esdeath on the ground, a massive spire of ice in hand like an Olympian thrower. The pike of ice was at least fifteen feet long and more than an inch and a half in diameter. He only had just enough time to register what it was before she launched it at him.

Even if they were both either immune or resistant to the ice element, the sheer mass was not something to be ignored any longer. Cocytus gripped the smoke white odachi with all four hands and swung down and into the oncoming projectile. The Guardian of Nazarick strained against the onslaught as the massive projectile split down the middle around him like a buzzsaw to a tree trunk. As the tail end split into two, it was instantly replaced with the point of Esdeath's rapier dipping under his guard and toward his torso.

"TCH!" Releasing two hands from the katana, he caught the blade of the rapier with them. Slashing sideways, he was surprised to see Esdeath release her hold on her blade and duck before sweeping out in a cross kick that caught him in the ankle. She was no monk or martial artist, but it still hurt and made him back up a step. He flipped her weapon around in his hand, wielding both simultaneously.

Her Brawler class levels in combination with her Berserker and Monster Slayer levels gave her hand-to-hand combat ability on par with a monk, but only against grotesques and other monstrous creatures not of humanoid nature. Otherwise, she just dealt more than average damage with unarmed strikes than someone without proper Monk or Martial Artist training.

In response, both far eastern and western blade sought her head as she tumbled backward, her acrobatic moves allowing her to narrowly avoid both by mere hairs. Her right foot lashed out, kicking him in the clawed hand that grasped her weapon. Letting the weapon go, he summoned another weapon to his hands, a halberd of superlative make and thrust, hoping to catch her as she plucked her weapon from the air.

The attack grazed her left side, drawing blood.

"Hmm . . . hn! Hah ha . . . ! HahahAHHAHA~~~!"

Esdeath brought her weapon down like a bolt from the heavens, crashing down on his guard with the Japanese styled blade and forcing it down. The tip of the blade of her rapier drew a line on his left mandible. A faint greenish liquid seeped out of the cut. Not done with her counter, she spun on a heel and speared him in the abdomen with a ferocious spinning sidekick that shoved him back several yards.

"Haha! Yes Cocytus! That's it . . . let us fight to our heart's content. We've got until sunset, let's fight!"

Rushing in again, Cocytus leveled his halberd and the ponderous weapon arced wide with the intent of catching her with the weapon mid haft. Ducking low, the attempt traversed through nothing but air. The [ _God Slaying Emperor_ ]odachi whistled in the air as it fell in vertical descent. The blade met the rapier Esdeath held behind the small of her back with the tip pointed upward and to her left and she pressed onward. The two weapons sparked and screamed as she closed the remaining distance. Twisting her torso and swirling her ebony blade to the side, she subverted the elegant single edge blade and lashed out with another side kick. He blocked the powerful unarmed strike with a hand that released one hold on his pole arm.

This time, he thrust with the weapon and she unleashed a blast of freezing wind to knock the blow aside before counter thrusting. A flash of bright steel and the ringing of metals sounded as he parried with the God Tier eastern blade. Cocytus turned, adding centrifugal force to his next attack with the halberd, yet again held in both hands.

As Esdeath launched herself into the air, he swung counter to the halberd attack with the exotic odachi in both of his other hands. The two attacks level to the ground would double bisect her. Esdeath pushed herself into a corkscrew spin and leveled out, belly to the sky as the weapons passed under and above her. As they blew by, she could not help herself and winked up at Cocytus before blowing a kiss that transformed into a whirling fury of jagged icicles engulfed by a tornado of sleet.

Despite his massive frost resistance, he covered his facial area and clacked his mandibles loudly. Summoning ragged spires of ice to try and catch her from below, he noticed that it managed to drive her away. Most fighters would have been satisfied to simply retreat from the dual assault. The unorthodox style that Esdeath brought to the table was something that was forcing him out of his depth.

A great part of him was rather apprehensive in fighting Draconis's subordinate, but the other part of him, his warrior's spirit, was soaring. This was a real challenge. She could actually hurt him with her fighting ability. Right now they were merely feeling each other out, gauging the edges of their opponents capabilities.

Cocytus's mandibles clacked hard and loud as the cold steam of his breath rushed from his being. He drew a third weapon, a huge one handed battle axe. As he did so, he settled into an actual battle stance. This would be enjoyable to no end.

"Oh? Cocytus is actually setting himself into a serious fighting stance. This will be interesting."

Ainz's observation made the other Guardians lean forward a bit. They would all learn from this experience. Out of all of Draconis's own subordinates, the only one known to them other than Akame was Esdeath. Seeing how she fought would be unimaginably valuable. Demiurge especially took interest in this fight. He pushed his glasses farther up the bridge of his nose. There was no way he was going to miss out on this. After all, when was the last time any of them had seen him draw more than two weapons?

The lizard men gaped at the martial and supernatural powers being fielded by the two combatants.

"Magic and martial combat?" Crusch shook her head and grunted negatively at Zaryusu's question.

"No, it looks like powers that they were already bestowed by their very nature. I think that woman isn't human."

He swallowed and nodded numbly. No runes indicating Tier Magic casting could be seen between the frost blue humanoid insectoid and the woman.

Esdeath rushed back in, her teal hair like a battalion banner flag in the wind as she fired off a barrage of crystalline spikes at her foe. Cocytus merely tanked them all while setting his halberd against her charge. Holding the halberd single handed, he braced the weapon's pommel with the arch of his clawed foot. The axe switched to his second off hand and the odachi was gripped with both his right hands. This allowed for him to counter either left or right while warding off a dead on assault. She narrowed her eyes as she took in this detail and took to the skies with a massive leap. The response he gave her was a geometrical pyramid of icicle spires to protect himself as she forged swords of ice and threw them down at him. The opposed ice abilities shattered on each other, scattering bone chilling dust all around them.

Now they were at a stand off yet again. For all of Cocytus's dexterity, the vast majority of it was purely from his multiple arms and the ability to wield up to four different weapons with each. All of them with equally devastating prowess. In terms of actual mobility, he was no where near the level of Esdeath. While her finesse of arms was not as flexible weapon wise and number of weapons, her mobility was far higher than Cocytus.

This was one of the biggest issues with the stats of PC and NPCs in YGGDRASIL. Dexterity scores were a culmination of mobility and finesse. So while Dexterity could be outstandingly high, the real mobility could be abysmal as Cocytus's was despite his ridiculous trait of quadruple wielding. Conversely, Esdeath only could wield at most two weapons in each hands, but was quick on her feet and extraordinarily lithe.

Esdeath eyed Cocytus as she slowly circled around him like a wild cat stalking her prey. Cocytus remained utterly stoic as she did so, merely tracking her movements with each weapon in hand as she changed location in his quadrants. It was like a mongoose tracking a king cobra.

* * *

The Guardians of Nazarick either frowned or grumbled and muttered darkly at the standoff between the two combatants.

"Is she toying with him? Of all the insulting . . ." Demiurge grumbled while glaring.

Shalltear and Aura oddly in a rare show of solidarity frowned in concern. They had not heard of Esdeath being able to fight like this. It was so unorthodox by all of their standards! Shalltear remembered the reprimanding she got from all of her peers for fighting Lord Ainz. Yet when she was told about how Lord Ainz had defeated her, she could not help to realize several things. First and foremost, that looks were deceiving and secondly - that fights like these are never a guarantee. Part of her wondered just what Esdeath truly was. They all did not have much knowledge of Esdeath in general.

What's more, the conversation between her and the Frost Hussy as she put it, kept creeping back into her mind. How would she act to please the wishes of Ainz? Was Esdeath doing the same to please her own Master? Perhaps they were not so different after all? She shook her head hard and focused on the duel. She would learn all she could from this. All to further Lord Ainz's goals!

Aura and Mare were more upset in worry over Cocytus than about the appearances of Esdeath fighting their peer on even footing. As fighters, they were sub par for Level 100's. Their true strengths lay in magic and the sheer onslaught of status afflictions Aura could wield just by simply breathing and the number of beasts and pets she could bring to bear. When supported by Mare's druidic divine magics, they were truly an outstandingly powerful duo. One versus one though, it depended on the situation and the opponent if they were up to par levels-wise.

Yet Albedo remained pensive, not out of worry for Cocytus, but more as to the reason why Esdeath was acting this way. First she helped them, yet now she opposed them. Yet for all intents and purposes, Ainz was actually rather pleased with this development. It well and truly was baffling to her. Yet the more she watched, the more she began to see the reflection of Draconis in her from what she read of Nishikienrai's journal.

Granted, Esdeath's way of going about it and methodology was a fair amount more twisted than what Draconis probably would have done . . .

However, as Esdeath was showing them quite clearly . . . she was not to be underestimated. She remained outside of his striking distance and despite their shared element, something about her ice was indeed dealing damage to Cocytus.

None of them knew, but it was a racial trait she possessed. Ice Myth: a higher tier racial class of the Yuki-Onna.

This class allowed for her be be classified as a Frost Elemental in addition to her Fiend race via the Yuki-Onna racial progression. The two in combination unlocked a special ability: [ _Fell Hoarfrost_ ].

[ _Fell Hoarfrost_ ] turned any ice elemental attack she possessed into a mixture of ice and negative energy, allowing a portion of the damage to circumvent Cocytus's own Ice Resistance. It was not by a large margin due to his outstanding stats, but she was slowly whittling him down at magical range. As a Huntress, she knew full well that Cocytus was superior to her in physical melee combat. Her Berserker class abilities made her very robust, but using them recklessly could prove devastating as many of them dropped her defenses while active.

Still, for the sake of the lizard men tribes witnessing their fight, she dared not unleash her most potent racial abilities, as many of them were massive AoE skills that would destroy the area and catch them in the aftermath. As such, she was holding her big "fight breaking" moves in reserve. She was fairly sure that Cocytus was doing something very similar. Both of them had a rather generous personal investments in seeing the lizard men not annihilated.

Yet at the same time, she knew that at heart, they were both battle junkies. This was not to be to the death anyway. Planting her rapier into the ground, she dashed in after firing a shotgun blast of cold energy at Cocytus. He whirled bodily about, turning himself into a weaponized tornado: [ _Greater Whirlwind Assault_ ] was one of the high tiered 360 degree attacks that most melee fighters had to watch out for, but when combined with the multiple weapons Cocytus wielded, it was absolutely overwhelming. Esdeath charged in, timing her approach to catch him at his most vulnerable: when his back was fully turned to her.

The pommel of the halberd whipped around and nearly caught her dead on in the forehead. Scrapping by, she felt a warm liquid trail down her face: her blood. She ignored the superficial wound and slugged him in the back with a fist. The attack knocking him forward as she followed up with round house kick to his side. The Guardian of the Fifth Floor countered with a spinning slash of the odachi that rose into the air at an angle in the attempt to catch her in the left hip.

* * *

The force of the slash, sent shockwaves into the air. The blast of air pressure pushed some of the lizard men spectating a distance away, back half a foot. Zaryusu had known that they were severely outclassed with the revelation that only single fighter had been sent to fight them. He had known that they were going to all die. Yet the exchanges of these two beings shook everything he had learned outside the Tove Forests as a Traveler to his core.

MONSTERS.

That's what these were, true monsters. Not the dangerous wildlife and nightmare bed time stories that were told to keep younglings quiet and asleep in their beds at night. These were terrors given flesh. The woman . . . Esdeath, she was smiling during all of these exchanges that rattled his body even from this distance. He had a strong feeling that Cocytus was doing his race's equivalent of a smile as well as they clashed both with freezing powers and martial prowess.

 _If this is a fight between them . . . then what would a fight between there masters do?_

The only thing that could come to his brain was a single word: Annihilation.

* * *

In spite of her block with her weapon, the sheer force of the twirling strike Cocytus managed to catch her with sent her flying, a rare yelp of both surprise and distress left her lips as she was repelled. Flung away as she was, Cocytus took the initiative and charged with weapons ready. She rebounded off a nearby tree, gasping as she was winded. The assault that closed in on her was swift and vicious. Sliding down the trunk of the tree she avoided getting caught by the two weapons by a sliver; the odachi and axe cleaved and chopped through the tree like a hot knife through butter. The halberd pierced the tree straight through as she twisted her torso just barely in time.

As the tree fell, she pushed through her winded state and grabbed the falling plant life by either side and swung down, using the massive piece of scenery down on him like an over sized mallet. The Knight of Niflheim abandoned his halberd to block the tree club with a crossed arm block. Said tree shattered against his guard, particles and shards of wood splintering all around them. Leaves and smaller branched flew about as they ripped off of their main body. The makeshift screen gave Esdeath enough time to put some space between the two of them.

Cocytus walked out of the screen of destroyed plant life like it was nothing to worry about. As he did so, she took a cloth from a pocket and wiped her forehead and face clean of the blood and tossed it aside. Yes, this was a fight that was turning out to be oddly enjoyable.

"I do believe that will do for the warm up."

Esdeath smirked as she spoke and tossed her stray hair over her shoulder with a flick of her wrist. Setting herself into a loose fencer's stance, she took a deep breath, readying herself for the next clash.

Cocytus could sense that she was taking the level of combat to the next stage. In response to her sudden stance, he materialized the halberd again, but added the final, fourth weapon to his hands. The chingle changle of chain rang through the air. A single hand flail with spikes of bloody crimson swayed ominously in his lower left appendage.

 _Four weapons at once. Axe, odachi, halberd, and now a flail. Quite the mix up._

Ice Huntress Esdeath wore an eager, expectant smile. Finally . . . _finally_ . . . a fight she could actually go on in a fight for more than a single strike. This was what made this moment worth it. She lived for battle, that thrill between the seconds! She respected her Master dearly, but she was a fighter first and fore most. With everything going on since the transportation to this New World, they had other things to worry about. She knew this and did not hold it against her Lord for being cautious, but this was her passion.

Dashing in, she was quick, weaving back and forth to change the angle of her charge and make it less predictable. It was slower than her previous charges, but their was a keen sense of awareness to her movements. With four weapons at the ready to lash out against her, she could not afford to be so reckless this time.

As she approached, Cocytus rifled through the options he had to strike at her. With four different weapons with differing properties and traits, he could create a veritable web of death. As she closed ever closer, he started off with a thrust of the halberd in his upper right hand.

What happened next stunned him for a moment. Instead of stabbing her with the attack, she evaded . . . _in both directions_! There were two of her as a spray of wintry mist flowed over the spear tip of the polearm. He made to turn to face the Esdeath to his right and counter with the odachi, but resistance met his movements. His legs became unbelievably heavy as he glanced down and saw his legs frozen in perpetual ice materialized there by a _third_ Esdeath at his feet. Her hands grasped the ice below him.

As he realized that fact, a shadow was cast upon him from above. He looked up to see a _fourth_ Ice Huntress bearing down upon him from above. The previous two charged him from either side with rapiers aiming for differing points on his person. He raised his odachi to block the strike from above as he used the face of the axe to parry the left thrust. Whipping the flail around his back, the spiked ball at the end, hurtled in an arc at the Esdeath approaching from his right as he slashed downward at the one freezing his feet to the ground with the halberd.

The flail forced its targeted version of the Ice Huntress to block and go flying. She barely managed to flip herself upright before landing. Marshy water and mud sprayed everywhere as she came to a halt. Esdeath's other manifestations still grinned as the ones to his left and above were blocked. The halberd left a gouge in the ground as he missed that version of her. She lunged back and up to avoid the attack. Cocytus twirled the chain ball of the flail in a windy rotation above his head and to the left to drive off the other two he blocked. The four versions of her repositioned to fully surround him.

"Oh? You fended off my [ _Four Winds of Fimbulvetr_ ]. At least the first move I made with it."

Cocytus readied each of his weapons at each one of them. This was not what he had expected at all. Yet there was something he did recall that his master Takemikazuchi had talked about.

 **" _Multiple clone attacks always have a downside. Like reduced power in all but the original, or loss in vitality to produce the extras, sometimes it's both. The ones that can pull off multiple copies that are the most dangerous, are the ones that do not lose power in their clones. The only thing that tends to balance that kind of thing out is a massive drop in vitality."_**

He wondered if that was the case with Esdeath as he readied his next move. Smashing the pommel of his halberd into the ice encasing his legs, he broke it easily and shook off the shards that remained.

"IMPRESSIVE!" He had no doubt that she was superior to him in the magical areas of their powers. She was impressive in physical combat, but it was clear to him from their exchanges thus far that he was the better in melee.

All four of her copies rushed in. Each one exchanged blows with Cocytus as he fended them off, four against one. Flurries of strikes and sparks flashed and sparked all around the Guardian of Nazarick as he shifted his stance, turning about left and right to bring the differing weapons he wielded to bear. Esdeath's copies were quick and strong, but his racial trait [ _Compound Eyes_ ] allowed him to keep track of every single one of them. He did make note that none of her copies went for strikes at his direct back in an odd display of honor. Perhaps it was her way of letting him know that she respected his martial prowess and power enough to not go for such attempts.

Regardless, they clashed again and again. Each copy of her reacting differently to each weapon the Guardian of the Fifth Floor deftly wielded against his opponents. Her movements were powerful but graceful and despite the slightly crazed eyes and manic smile, she remained in control of her awareness and other faculties.

The sun continued its trek across the skies and began to dip low. Sunset fast approach and still they fought on.

Rapier thrusts and slashes were countered by shunts and blocks from the sword and axe. The halberd swung wide and twirled in dangerous figure eights, fending off her copies when they got too aggressive. The four jumped back at equidistant points and flipped their rapiers upside down in their grip. The pommels glowed with runes of Tier Magic.

"Amplify my own inherent magic! [ _Crystal Energy Vortex_ ]!" two of the Esdeath's cried as lateral tornadoes of ice and sleet with dagger like shards of frozen magic swirled and shrieked toward Cocytus from opposite directions. They were massive, twenty feet wide columns of cold death.

Cocytus weathered the spells with his natural resistance to the element. He notice that these spells did not have the same mixture of elemental types so he was tanking this better than her natural [ _Fell Hoarfrost_ ] abilities.

 _STILL THOUGH. TIER VII MAGIC FOR HER . . .! LORD DRACONIS HAS FEARSOME FOLLOWERS. BUT I AM NO DIFFERENT!_

As the other two clones unleashed another pair of spells, Cocytus slammed his weapons into the ground at each of the spells' paths. Lifting his claws into the air, he encased himself in a pyramid of permafrost that had each weapon as a corner stone. The spells from Esdeath died out and she nodded in appreciation of his defense.

"Fancy defense there."

[ _Sub-Zero Coffin_ ] was a special ability that Cocytus possessed as a Knight of Nifleheim. When unleashed on the ground, it created an unassailable, pyramid of protection that not even Tier VIII fire spells could melt. Very few fire spells and abilities could pierce its defenses . . . like [ _Armageddon Flame_ ] or [ _Hellfire Wall_ ]. High level dragon breath could melt it too, but that was not here or there.

An keen note rang from inside the pyramid before it shattered into a trillion motes of icy light. A quadruple flash of rings of white lashed out and hit all four of her like lightning. All of them gasped and burst into teal, frozen lights.

He had a pair of two handed battle axes with double heads with wicked blades that were stylized to represent ghostly wailing faces in agony. Grisly and nightmarish weapons which he swiftly abandoned to take up with other four weapons.

* * *

Ainz was both impressed and a bit disturbed that Esdeath had managed to make Cocytus use six of his 21 weapons at his disposal. He understood why Cocytus avoided unleashing the World Item he had given the Guardian in case he encountered another WI user. Yet Esdeath by herself had managed to make him use nearly half his arsenal.

He had been watching with keen interest. He recognized some of their attacks as Weapon Skills, not this New World's Martial Arts by any means; he was learning a ton about proper techniques. They way both of them shifted their weight, balanced their stances, struck at vital points or bluffed and feinted. Even at the speeds they were moving at, he could tell quite a bit. He had never truly appreciated the skill and time it took the melee fighters to get good at their trade in YGGDRASIL. Never mind the ones like Touch Me, who could parry god damned magic dependent on the kind of spell. Or Lancelot of Avalon who could slaughter magic casters with an ease that made people accuse him of hacking. Bukubukuchagama and Draconis could both tank spells with their Tank Type Weapon and Armor Skills.

Ever since his fight with Clementine, he had begun to genuinely take interest in learning those tricks of the trade and in his time as Momon . . . had truly begun to appreciate their skill it took to fight without magic. Especially against magic. He had always thought that fighters and other front liners were more flail and wail on the enemy. Magic was simple, you learned it, cast it, it was done. Granted, magic had all of its own complications, especially the ones with massive Area of Effect ranges, and other limitations like friendly fire and other obstacles like immunities and resistances or even worse _absorbing_ traits.

 _I guess when I think on it now. Magic really does run the hell over melee skill with ease. It's so much easier just to nuke a guy. Huh, I guess I owe some of the guys an apology. By comparison, what I'm doing posing as Momon is a joke. I guess that Clementine woman was a bit more justified in her annoyance with me than I thought . . . Not that she can bitch about it anymore._

He glanced around . . . where was Esdeath?

* * *

The answer came when the dust settled and they looked back at the forest. A spire of ice appeared about fifteen feet tall. It was hidden inside the trunk of the shattered tree she had used as a weapon against Cocytus.

Inside of it, encased like she had been on the Fifth Floor was Esdeath. Except she was smiling and looking right at Cocytus. The spire melted and she stepped out from it. She was breathing quite hard and a thin layer of sweat beaded on her brow. Yet she seemed quite happy. Her eyes were wide and bright with excitement and a manic smile spread across her lips.

"That was quite amazing Cocytus! If it wasn't for my [ _Celsius Cocoon_ ] and [ _Hibernal Healing_ ] abilities, that quadruple circle strike would have taken me down to the brink.

* * *

Ainz was honestly impressed. He had heard of these abilities.

[ _Celsius Cocoon_ ] was very similar to Cocytus's [ _Sub-Zero Coffin_ ]. An ice based defense, but [ _Hibernal Healing_ ] absorbed ice, slush, and snow as HP. To think that she would combine the two to heal herself after paying the HP costs of summoning four clones of her own power level via [ _Four Winds of Fimbulvetr_ ]! It was an insane gambit!

Losing all four at once had to have hurt her though. Her HP had to be practically hemorrhaging at this point.

Demiurge and the other Guardians were stunned. This fight had been wholly different, yet still as powerful as Ainz when he had gone to fight Shalltear. While there were not any Tier IX or X spells being thrown around like candy, this was still a battle of epic proportions. As a Tank, Albedo could appreciate the skills they both possessed. As the Guardian of Floors 1, 2, and 3 of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Shalltear definitely could see that Esdeath was every bit their equal despite her often infuriating blasé attitude.

Aura and Mare frowned and quivered in concern respectively. They had heard the rumors of how strong Esdeath could be, but hearing and seeing were different things.

Demiurge inwardly seethed and plotted. How could an outsider be so strong?! It was they who were the strong, everything else was weak and pathetic! A trinket in the jewel box that glorious Ainz-sama wished to conquer! How dare she turn up her nose at him and resist the glory of Ainz-sama!

He muttered a curse under his breath, directed at Esdeath. A dark spark gathered at the ends of his finger tips as his frustration grew.

"How is it that she is still going after all this time? It makes no sense. Lord Takemikazuchi made no mistakes in teaching Cocytus in the arts of martial warfare so why is this Ice Witch keeping up with him?"

Shalltear shook her head at his gripes.

"But didn't Takemikazuchi say himself that those that can adapt and learn were just as dangerous?"

Demiurge pushed his spectacles farther up his nose and nodded.

"That is true Shalltear. I just find it abhorrent that the servant of that exile is able to contend with one of us."

"You have an issue Demiurge?"

Ainz's voice made them tense. They had not realized that their Supreme Leader was listening in on their conversation. A dark flame from his eye sockets flickered at them. Albedo could be seen on the other side of Ainz with a slight frown marring her beauteous features.

"My Lord . . . I apologize, but I grow discontent seeing Cocytus struggle against Esdeath."

The Overlord's head tilted up a bit, though the eye flame remained fixed upon them. It seemed to Ainz that Ulbert's discontent with Draconis and Touch Me carried over to Demiurge.

"Perhaps that is due to your more intellectual methods Demiurge. However, I do not find it odd that she is able to fight as she does against Cocytus. She is not stronger than him in martial combat, but she is more flexible by far. I have learned a great deal from this duel between them. Power is merely a means . . . a very good means, yet still only just."

"It is an insult to the Supreme Beings that she would make Cocytus struggle as he is."

"Do not insult their pride as warriors Demiurge!"

Ainz's power flared to the point of halting Esdeath and Cocytus's fight. He growled his words at the Fiend as he gripped a fist tight.

"I have learned much since we arrived in this New World and one of them is a warrior's pride. Often I had heard of this, but never understood. Even with valued comrades and friends in Touch Me, Takemikazuchi, Nishikienrai, and Bukubukuchagama speaking of their talents and powers, I never truly understood the nuances and skill it took to fight one-on-one, or one against many. Yet learning as Momon has changed that mindset in me. Fighting as they do certainly challenged me. Fighting Shalltear in those final stages of the battle making use of my esteemed friend's power . . . it filled me with an exhilaration like no other! Yet it was humbling afterward. To know of that feeling and tasted the sweetness of victory afterward. It is something I have only recently come to understand. So do not mock them. It is in those moments that they feel truly at their greatest."

"Hrm . . . very well Lord Ainz. Even if she is an outsider."

The grumble was low, but Ainz and the others heard it anyway. Eye flames flared brilliantly as he held up a deathly hand and clenched a fist. He really was acting like Ulbert, and normally he did not care, but his attitude toward the situation was becoming grating. He raised his voice, the power and annoyance in it clear.

"Demiurge! Cocytus will finish this battle in a fashion worthy of their fight!"

* * *

Esdeath tilted her head to the side in confusion.

"What is going on? Are they actually arguing?"

Her sense tingled and she brought her rapier up to defend, but a definitive sound met her ears and she gasped. Teal ice blue eyes looked down to her blade and the weapon cracked. The runes dulled and the gift from Draconis shattered. The combination of the odachi, flail, axes, and halberd all colliding with a weapon that was of the same tier or lower had done its damage. The endurance of the weapon gave out against the superior caliber of Cocytus's weapons.

What she did not realize was that he had an innate passive. [ _Weapon Breaker_ ]. It allowed his natural swings and strikes to deal more damage than normal in addition to chipping away at a weapon's endurance at a far faster rate than was normal.

If this was a slash, it would have broken her weapon and flown by, but missed.

This was a thrust.

The haze white blade of the odachi struck her through the chest as her ebon blade broke in two.

Cocytus had heard Ainz raise his voice in discontent. A thrust was the fastest strike he had, and so he used it.

The act drew the attention back to them and the air seemed to grow so tense that a single word would shatter this moment.

* * *

It was over in an instant. Anti-climactic and abrupt. The Ice Huntress gasped, the God Slaying Emperor Odachi pierced her chest and ran through her back. Blood poured from the wound as she gazed up at Cocytus with a mix of sadness and scorn. Despite her gaze, she spoke no words. Raising her hands, she dropped her broken rapier to the frozen ground. Feminine hands calloused by swordsmanship and battle cradled the clawed appendage of Cocytus.

"[ _M_ _ahapadma_ ]."

The immediate area around them seemed to halt. A broad, snow blue tint covered their surroundings, but fell short of Ainz's pyramid.

"WHAT?!" Cocytus could not believe it as she coughed, blood splattering him from her lips. He realized quickly what was happening and he dared not believe it.

 _ESDEATH CAN STOP TIME . . . WHY DID SHE NOT USE THIS AGAINST ME? IT WOULD HAVE DECIDED THE WHOLE DUEL . . . A DUEL . . . THIS WAS ONLY A DUEL. IT WAS NOT A FIGHT TO THE DEATH IN THE FIRST PLACE!_

"It seems . . . ngh . . . it seems you realize it." She murmured, his sword from Takemikazuchi still in its place through her torso. She coughed and hacked, more blood soaking his exoskeleton. Grimacing with a sour expression, she struggled to form words as her capstone power worked against her little remaining health.

"As a Guardian, as a peer . . . a master of ice and its beauty and deadly nature. I do not hold you guilty of this act. I hope with this you . . . you finally . . . see for yourself . . . that even the strongest make mistakes. They fail . . . as I do now . . ."

"ESDEATH . . ." He could not form the words. What was this feeling? She was a warrior as he was. He felt nothing in battle, so why did he have feelings of regret in this moment? As if reading his thoughts, she moved a hand up to one of his mandibles and smirked despite her pain.

"You do have brain in there after all. You're thinking . . . cough. Good. I think you will come through this . . . this strong . . . stronger . . . . . . . than before. Cocytus . . . what is strength?"

The question stunned him for a moment. What did she mean by this? Was it not obvious?

"STRENGTH IS THE POWER TO FIGHT. TO WIN IN BATTLE. THE OPPOSITE OF WEAKNESS."

"There was a time I believed the same. Yet . . . over time I began to think on it long and hard." She gripped his appendage hand hard and even he felt her strength despite her condition. Her eyes hardened with resolve. Pushing down the urge to break down into a hacking fit, she pressed on, her voice becoming strained. "What do you think happens to a sword . . . left out of its sheath too long?"

That was not a hard one for Cocytus to answer.

"IT GROWS DULL AND RUSTS."

"Is not power . . . and . . . raw strength the same? Left exposed and flaunted it will run dry like a well. Why do you think my master dislikes flaunting it . . . as yours is now?" She pressed onwards, ignoring the sudden indignation he felt. "Wellsprings of power are not infinite . . . Cocytus. Even we have limits . . . they are just higher than anything these lizard men I fight for can even imagine."

She glanced back at Zaryusu and Crusch with an oddly fond smile. My but she had grown rather attached to these lizard men.

"Would, would . . . it not be more of an honor and glory to nurture them instead of simply destroying them? To revel in their gains and glorious victories with them, rather than force it on them? To be true warriors? Brothers in arms?"

The thought resonated with his background as a warrior and soldier. A violent cough shook him from his musings though as she continued to lose strength.

"I wish . . . that you would see yourself as more than a mere naked blade to be brought forth only in battle."

The Guardian of the Fifth Floor did something he never expected himself to do in a situation like this . . . he flinched.

Flinched in surprise.

Flinched in disbelief.

Flinched in denial.

Flinched in dread.

 _SHE KNEW . . . SHE KNEW WHAT I WORRIED OVER . . ._

"I wonder . . . would Master be pleased with my progress?"

Cocytus clacked his mandibles once in trepidation. Was she speaking to herself now?

"Ah . . . Lord Draconis . . . I finally . . . I finally understand why you act as you do. For others like them. Like Cocytus . . . even if it is not the exact same, it is . . . fulfilling . . . Know that I do not hate you Cocytus. You struck at an opportunity and . . . though I defended in time . . . my blade . . . failed me."

With those words, the chilled, frozen time around them collapsed and she slumped on his sword.

The evanescent whisper that floated from her lips haunted him.

"I . . . will . . . miss . . . y-y . . you . . . I'm sorry . . . Akame . . . guess . . . I won't . . . g-get . . . that duel after . . . all." She shuddered slightly. "M-master . . ."

Delicate fingers traced the dull side of the odachi as she slid from the blade. Falling free of the tip as she fell backward, she smiled faintly, a tear fell from the corner of her eyes, freezing as a cold diamond gem.

* * *

 **Okay, you may cast the stones my way . . .**

 **Reader Review Responses.**

* * *

 **Awayuki:** Though he does his best to walk his talk, Draconis knows that he is far from perfect. He is just very aware of his weaknesses and failings and tries to do better than himself. He still sees Ainz as a friend, but true friends can and will call you out and reprimand you if they do really care about you. Evils don't even tolerate other evils. And Draconis is not innocent, but he does have his breaking points.

 **Rmarcano321:** I've already stated why I'm writing this fic LONG ago. More than once I believe as well.

 **Demigoose:** If your name is any indicator of who your favorite character in Overlord is . . . This is not about being evil and turning them good, it is about taking someone unsure and indecisive into a decisive and competent leader. **But growth like that is not instantaneous.** You can be evil as shit, but incompetence ruins you. You can be good as a saint, but incompetence ruins you.

This isn't about turning Ainz into a P as you put it. I love some of the villains out there in the stories and comics and movies. Marvel's Loki, Galactus, Batman's The Joker, Final Fantasy Tactics's Delita Hyral, Suikoden's Luca Blight, just to name a few.

They are COMPETENT villains. Evil by every means of the word. I love their characters. Yet the Light Novel and even worse, the anime doesn't show this in a way that makes me like Ainz _in his current state_ anymore. The Guardians of Nazarick are better characters in that regard. I actually can respect Demiurge's character if it wasn't for the fact that Ainz plays like a puppy and rolls over to reveal his belly whenever he or Albedo get aggressive or make assumptions when he has ABSOLUTE BLIND LOYALTY. One word, just one . . . and they would roll over for him. Yet every time he feels hesitant, he cops the hell out and just says . . . go do whatever.

In a nutshell, when all he has to do is say "Do it" or "No" and they will or will not purely because he's their equivalent of GOD.

The anime does horribly at portraying these flaws. They come off as comedy, when in reality, they are crippling deficits on his character that he needs to work out and grow from. However, he has not shown any of these growth signs at all.

He rolls over and just flies with whatever Demiurge comes up with because he believes Demiurge is smarter than him, which is actually probably true. But that very intelligence works against Demiurge when Demiurge himself thinks that Ainz is SO intelligent that he automatically assumes grand schemes when there isn't a single damn scheme to be had in Ainz's brain other than "go with the moment."

Do I plan on saving everyone? HECK NO.

Some of them? YES

Kill some of them that didn't die? HECK YES.

Characters that deserve to? If this chapter was any indication? HELLO?

Alright then. Moving on . . .

 **Wacko12:** Eventually . . .

 **UndeadLord22:** The talk between Jircniv and Draconis is soon. SO VERY SOON . . . .

 **MadDan90:** Here's that chapter, after work, convention, two hurricanes, and dumb roommates who can't get our Internet going right . . . yeesh. I need alcohol.

 **Omegadramon2:** Glad you enjoyed it.

 **Dimension Distorter:** Thanks for enjoying the fic so far.

 **RyujiVantek:** Glad you picked up on that, but Esdeath was speaking more on going off of "nothing but heart." Even in her own canon, she was not immune to emotion, just didn't recognize it and acknowledge it. She was logical and pragmatic to a level of extremes.

 **Generation Zero:** I'm glad that you are enjoying the read and I'm at least doing something right . . . lol. Yeah, if my above rant was anything to go by . . . Ainz just has so many horrid issues that it just chafed. Yes, it will be difficult to strike a balance for Ainz, but from all the info from the Light Novels, Momonga has what it takes, he needs a "spine" though. . . . oddly enough.

 **Loki98065:** I hope you continue to read and enjoy the fic. I look forward to you getting up to speed with my chapters.

 **Stefan Anthony Arbuzinski:** Thank you for dropping by and leaving the review. I look forward to seeing more in the future from you.

 **DepressedNinja75:** I could, but that much detail at times rankles some readers. I may in future chapters repost as some massive changes take place with certain characters.

 **BrackentheInvisible101:** It pleases me to no end that you are finding them enjoyable, especially with the little call outs I do here and there to some of my favorite games and manga/anime.

* * *

 **Okay, so the next chapters takes us back . . . FINALLY . . . to Draconis and his adventures in Arwintar. The discussion between him and Jircniv is just around the corner . . . as is the Men of the Kingdom Arc. Which was MY personal favorite . . . though Climb does make me cringe . . . HARD.**

 **Keep in mind that Draconis upcoming chapters happen during the beginning of the Lizardman Arc and run parallel to it. You guys will see him from his perspective of Cocytus's [ _Message_ ] asking for help and such. So please keep that in mind as you read.**

 **This chapter DID keep going, but when I really looked at it, I broke it off due to events from Draconis's side of things needing to be done before hand. Otherwise, this thing would have gone on for fifteen more pages. . . . my hands . . l argh my hands hurt.**

 **See you all next time!**


	30. Chapter 28: Of Gods and Men

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Notes:** Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

Well . . . we are finally returned to the Draconis Side of the story.

With the advent of Autumn and the Holidays just around the corner, things are crazy at work and all. Sorry for the slow updates. Be assured I am working on chapters whenever I'm not juggling work, family, and off time. Enjoy.

* * *

 **Chapter 28: Of Gods and Men**

* * *

Draconis sat at the table of the Singing Apple Pavilion with an unamused expression. Whereas Lucia sat to his side with a _highly_ amused expression. Ever since the previous day's victory against Go Gin, the newly crowned Martial Lord had been inundated with meetings by Adventurer Teams, Workers, merchants, and nobles. Much less the common folk who could manage to get a glimpse of the new champion of the Grand Arena. Emperor Jircniv was taking the time needed to arrange the meeting between the two of them and it was not something he had expected to be done within the next two or three days at most. Yet he had not expected quite as large a turn out of people trying to curry his favor.

His stature was what usually caught the attention of those that came to see him. Rare were the number of people that could match his height if they met him standing up. While he sat with a posture that most would envy or swoon over, he also had his moments of distaste or subtle body language which showed that he wished to bring the conversation or proposition to a swift close. On the other foot, Lucia lounged in her own chair as she enjoyed seeing her dragon peer in the hot seat.

The current individual trying to vie for the good graces of Draconis was a promising, but young merchant who just could not seem to take the hints of body language and bored tone Draconis had finally slipped into when polite, professional rebuffs did not make the point clear. He was now half reclined in the chair he sat in as he swirled a glass of wine from his inventory of stat boosting foodstuffs. Never mind the bottle on the table had made one merchant faint with the quality of the container alone.

[ _Faery Liqueur_ ] was a Relic Tier wine that possessed a misnomer. What was hard stout drink to a faery of the faye races, was a sweet wine to those not of more delicate constitutions. As a dragon? The taste and bouquet were the reasons for enjoying the alcohol. Never mind that it drove of mental status afflictions for up to eight hours. True to being of faye nature, the bottle was not something that human hands could craft. The bottle was crafted from Level 70 Gemwood and crushed Level 85 Blue Star Sapphires. The jewels enchanted the bottle to be ever wreathed in a light frost, chilling the beverage at all stages of the year. The stopper was a piece of hand crafted cork that had enchanted vines that popped the stopper and resealed the container all on its own with a mere touch of the owner. That alone made many merchants back out of talking. If the man had such things for a mere drink, it didn't matter what they could bring to the table, they would never hold up.

"Please Martial Lord. Surely something in my stocks would provide some assistance to your person."

Then there was this guy . . .

Draconis sighed and sat up as he placed the glass upon the table they were at. Intertwining his fingers on the surface of the table, he gave the young man a patient gaze. Taking in a breath through his nose, and releasing it out again the same way, the words that came from his lips were even and measured.

"Young man. I can appreciate your enthusiasm and persistence, but there is a line. You crossed it a while ago. Others wish to have their turns to speak, but you have become a tad too desperate in the eyes of your peers."

Draconis's eyes went from eye contact with the young man, to over his shoulder and back again. The young merchant stopped in his words and turned to look back. Several merchants, a few nobles, and several other adventurer teams were all giving him the stink eye. Others were merely shaking their heads in pity. Here and there, a few more laughed at him for the rookie mistake of not knowing when your overstayed the welcome. Sputtering, he bowed low to the table and got up quietly and left. He did not make eye contact with anyone on his way out.

Draconis sighed heavily and shook his head in pity. That one would have some problems latter on as the kid who could not see the clues. As the next person came up to the table, he greeted him with a nod and gesture to the chair opposite of him as a courtesy. Internally, he was groaning in both frustration and gradual exhaustion. Despite that, he had been through this kind of thing before. He found it needlessly tedious.

 _I did dig myself into this hole though . . ._

Off to another table, Foresight could only watch as he was practically hounded by men and women coming to either pay their respects, attempt to curry his favor, or just catch a glimpse of the man up close. To be honest, they felt rather badly for the man. While he was being surprisingly courteous to most of those to came to see him, they did not miss the amused chuckles of his female companion at his plight. The man took the jabs she made at him with a level of patience that they knew they themselves were not capable of.

Hekkeran had always thought that such prestige would give a man the easy street, but this was borderline criminal. The man had no privacy since the end of the match and had been eyed all the way back to the Singing Apple Pavilion. More than a few young, beautiful women had come to test their luck, but that had been utterly, completely, and soul crushingly diffused by the revelation of a wedding band upon his ring finger that was of such detailed craftsmanship for a band that rumors began to float around concerning who the man's wife could possibly be. Never mind that he had resolutely crushed one woman's hopes even as a mistress with a firm, confident, and affection filled declaration of faithful monogamy for his significant other. It had made a number of women listening in swoon.

That had the worker team whispering to each other. Lucia mentioned that they were far older than even Fluder Paradyne! Was he a widower? Did he find a woman capable to living to the same extent as him through magic? Surely he would not be satisfied with someone that could not keep up with him. Could he?

Imina sipped her drink, becoming a bit bored with the whole affair now that the initial wonder of the situation had passed. Roberdyck wondered about the nature of the man, he had clearly taken a sword to the chest that should have killed him. Yet he had healed so fast it defied description. In no records did anything indicate anything magical that could allow a person to heal so fast that mortal wounds could be shrugged off like scratches. If he could do that, then it was no small wonder that he would adventure by himself. Anyone not capable of the same would only slow him down . . .

 _Wait, does that mean that that woman Lucia is like him?_

He tried not to dwell on that too much. At the other side of the table, Arche sat with a pensive look upon her features. Draconis had done everything she had demanded and then some. Even looking at the man now, she felt fear and trepidation. There was no need to push for further proof of his powers, he'd played off a wound that would have killed any other man, nah, most mortal beings! His blood had caught fire! Blue fire at that! What could that color possibly portend? He had sworn to not use magic, but what if he was not human? What if it was one of the pieces of his panoply that allowed him to survive such a thing?

He had been holding back against the Martial Lord Go Gin! She could see that even as a Magic Caster during their fight. When he had actually gotten serious, Go Gin had been felled so easily . . .

"If he truly is that strong, why even bother with magic?" Her voice garnered the attention of her fellow Workers. When they eyed her in confusion, she elaborated. "He said that it was 'natural' for someone to train for when what you normally relied on failed, but if he's that powerful, what could possibly be out there that his strength would fail?"

Hekkeran swallowed as he thought about that. What kind of things did someone that powerful fight? He met with that woman in armor accompanied by dragons a few days ago.

"Don't tell me he fights dragons?"

The group shrugged at each other and shook their heads. This was too confusing to figure out.

* * *

 **The Lair**

 **Astrological Chamber of Time**

* * *

The Astrological Chamber of Time was Chronos Timetable's personal domain within The Lair. Situated at the center most, bottom chambers of the Dragon Ascendant's home, he was well insulated from initial intruders. It was less a floored chamber than it was a spatial void containing the stars and heavens themselves within. Here, he could observe the area around the chamber out to several thousand meters beyond the outer entrances of his master's home. Even though Seraphim Empyrean were normally magical and physical combat monsters, he had lost a bit of that power to gain something that Draconis thought far more potent.

The ability to perform divination and scrying on a level that was ignored by many YGGDRASIL players. He could accurately pinpoint players and their classes and races at the least within ten miles of The Lair proper like an active radar. If he focused his attentions on a single individual, he could learn their items, racial traits, and classes. Give Chronos enough time, and he could learn your whole life story if the passing of time needed to do so was not a priority.

Of course, that level of divining was best done with a willing subject. He did still respect privacy enough to not delve into personal affairs unless instructed to do so. Learning about the Slane Theocracy had taken priority even over the Beastmen Kingdoms simply due to Draconis's concerns about zealots of a fanatical religious order.

His master had been right to do so. Especially as he learned about the Six Great Gods and their origins. The discovery of the Guild of YGGDRASIL that had founded the Theocracy was an important step to understanding that there were indeed threats to beings even as powerful as them, much less Ainz Ooal Gown and Nazarick. World Items . . . always a threat to be wary against.

The discovery of Zesshi Zetsumei was merely a bonus for him. Her fate intrigued him, but he was better to err on the side of caution. She was the descendant of someone like his liege. A "Player" as the higher echelons of the Theocracy called them. Seemingly aware of beings from another realm, the Cardinals were no fools. Yet when humans here could only advance so far, even as Godkins . . .

It was why he was levitating above the humans in front of him. They were all gob-smacked. A few of them tried to prostrate themselves before him, but failed utterly in the void they found themselves floating within. He had chuckled for a bit at their awkward adjusting to their situation.

His six great wings shifted and fluttered as he made himself more comfortable. He dumbed down his [ _Heavenly Aura_ ] to not utterly crush the members of the Clearwater Scripture. He also dispelled his magic runes to ease their fears. If they saw his angelic runes in full force, they would have probably dropped dead from fear.

Amelia Lumier was berating herself endlessly for her lack of faith from the teachings of the church, more specifically, Yvon Jasna Dracrowa, Cardinal of Light. How could she help it if he looked absolutely sinister? His eyes were so narrow and he was so skinny and pale . . .

Left Ramrod was in shock. He had woken up first to see all of his fellow Clearwater Scripture members unconscious. He had made to make use of what little healing potions they had on their cleric, but the woman was merely unconscious. He did not know how, she had been beaten profusely into the ground like a ball by that damned bunny! He remembered how her crossbow was shattered by its teeth before it pounced on her. Yet she was merely knocked out. Recalling the fight in greater detail, he examined himself to not find himself slashed to pieces. There were not even bruises on him! It could not be possible, that woman had slashed him with a martial art he'd never thought possible!

Then the world had given out from beneath them and they found themselves in the night skies! Weightless . . . as if under the effect of the [ _Fly_ ] spell. Yet there was no sign of the ground or any other landmarks. Nothing but star filled darkness . . . until the angel appeared before them, six glorious wings spread wide!

His wings stretched more than twenty feet per wing, and were arrayed like a six pronged halo behind him. Golden blond hair that flowed to his shoulders shined with soft light. His eyes blazed like azure fire! His skin complexion was the stuff women fantasized about . . . porcelain white and free of blemishes. His clothing was pure white as well, like fresh fallen snow. A sapphire sky blue sash wrapped around his waist and was folded in a triangle shape to drape down his left side. On his right hip was a golden hilted sword with a winged cross guard and glittering scabbard. He wore sandles upon his feet and his right ankle was adorned with an anklet of pure crimson ruby.

Adorning his shoulders was a short cloak of the same sapphire blue trimmed in matching gold for the sword. His left hand held a staff of pure diamond! The item was at least six feet tall and had wing designs at its neck and headpiece. Enshrouded within those wing motifs were gemstones of emerald and ruby. The angel wore no armor, but they had a strong feeling he did not need such things. When he spoke, the very words felt like they would crush them. His voice was like thunder!

When he began speaking he stopped abruptly, as if sensing that his voice was too much for them to bear. It became a much more tolerable tenor.

"Be not afraid, members of the Clearwater Scripture. Know well that I will not harm you so long as you do not attempt to harm anyone here."

That the angel knew what they were a part of did not bode well. Even with the words of assurance. They recognized his voice from before, but he had admitted that he was a Guardian of this place. The monolith that they had read had clearly stated that this place was under the ownership of one Draconis Brightblade. Who was this person who could claim to have the highest order of angel as a Guardian? One of the more devout tried to prostrate herself, but swiftly found herself tumbling end over end. The weightlessness was jarring.

"It was true . . . an angel . . ."

Some of the other members of the group frowned in suspicion. He seemed otherworldly, yes, but he was hardly taller than a few of them. Some of the other angels in the higher circles of the heavenly studies were far larger and fanciful. Was this truly a Seraphim Empyrean?

The entity before them lifted a hand and snapped his fingers. A magical glyph appeared above them and from it the creatures that began to form made them gawk.

"So you still have doubts . . . Understandable. Dominion Authority!"

The bright flash of light as he summoned what the Slane Theocracy considered the highest of angel summons blinded them. As they took in the sight of the angel, they shook in awe as it acknowledged the man before them as its summoner.

Amelia and Left both swallowed. Dominion Authority was an angel that took several magic casters, a veritable king's ransom and extreme risk to summon. Normally it ended up in disaster, with the casters dying or the spell going awry and destroying everything in the vicinity. The absurd ease in which this being brought forth what was the highest of angels to them was mind numbing.

"This is the power of a Seraphim? An Empyrean?"

The legends that the Six Great Gods themselves had spoken of, Seraphim Empyreans, the strongest of all angels, that they would struggle against, if it could so easily summon an angel that could destroy one of the Evil Deities by itself. An angel capable of razing an entire city to the ground on its own and here it was, subservient to this one . . .

 _He said that he was a Guardian? What hallowed grounds have we tread upon?_ Amelia shuddered and whimpered in awe and fear. _What kind of entity makes someone like him a Guardian of his home?_

Amelia suddenly felt extremely foolish for ever questioning her faith and those of her teammates. Having not been baptized and granted a baptismal name, she dreaded this holy entity finding out about her lack of belief.

Left Ramrod liked to say that he was of decent faith and belief in the teachings of the Cardinals, but even then, he had only rarely seen the miracles of the sacred treasures and the superior magic contained with them. This experience was turning all of that on its head. What were treasures compared to the entity before them? He was taken down by a bunny . . . a _bunny_! What kind of twisted nature produced such a thing? That woman with amber eyes too! What kind of monsters were held here? He had always believed personally that humans were the best of the races. They had ingenuity, creativity, drive, and intellect that other races did not. They just never could reach their full potential because of their relatively short lifespans. But there were people like Fluder Paradyne and Rigrit Bers Caurau who defied that norm. As such, could not humans ascend to greater power than base monsters and demi-humans? YES . . . is what he used to say, but this past defeat at the hands of creatures with so much power that he did not even stand to them rattled everything he knew.

"That's not possible . . ." One of the other members muttered at the sight. One of them glared at the offender while others swallowed their words.

"You believe that your Six Great Gods say that my rank is something they would struggle against. You believe that your Godkins are their descendants. You have their treasures, and yet you deny my power? A power that your own gods say they would struggle against?"

They knew this line of questioning was loaded. The being before them sighed and dismissed the Dominion Authority. The larger angel bowed and vanished in a gleaming flash of light. He waved a hand and the spatial realm warped and twisted before fading in a spiral of celestial starlight before revealing a simple, but well crafted chair that was accompanied by several more of only slightly lesser quality. There were enough present in the newly appeared chamber to sit all of them comfortably.

"Please sit. I would rather you all be comfortable despite the intrusion you have inflicted upon The Lair."

Each of them tentatively took a seat in a nearby chair for each of them. The angel before them folded his wings before they seemed to vanish completely as he took his own seat. Amelia carefully observed the angel as he made himself comfortable. A portal opened and the whole group tensed as the amber eyed, green haired woman from before entered. She wore clothes that a few of them recognized from the far South. The unified provinces of Bakamatsu Genpei. Garbed in such odd clothing that seemed constricting yet elegant with the way she managed to smoothly make her way to the angel with a tray in her hands.

Upon the tray was a small earthen pot with steam coming from its lip. A pleasant scent wafted from the spout. Accompanying the pot was a set of earthen ware cups that matched the pot. They then noticed that two fuzzy creatures that strongly resembled foxes followed behind her with a tray between the two of them. Upon that were skewers of grilled fish and vegetables with what smelled like roasted chicken. Some of their stomachs growled and the woman eyed them with a smirk.

"Chronos-dono, I bring you some refreshments. Despite their intrusion, we will treat them as people, not pests. Though I do question your daring in letting them into your sanctum, I will leave that objection to our Liege Lord."

He looked to her and smiled softly before giving her a bow. The action stunned them, a celestial was bowing to this woman? Who was she?

"Thank you kindly Hazuki-dono. I understand your concerns. We are both Guardians of The Lair, and as such I know my actions today contradict that fact a bit. Yet did our Liege not implicitly order us to not kill anything sentient which enters unto our domains?"

She sighed heavily before nodding in agreement and she waved a hand to the two foxes accompanying her. The snow white creatures made their way towards them and in a puff of powder white smoke and an oddly playful "POP!" the two transformed into a pair of adorable little girls with fox ears and tails. They walked up to Amelia first with trays in hands. The shorter haired of the two girls placed a curved dish with a lip into her hands and filled it with some of the food they carried.

Amelia could only stare at them in stunned stupor. They wore matching clothes of the far South as well, but were so adorably cute to behold she almost forgot her hunger before her stomach growled again. Picking up the skewered fish, she frowned in thought and doubt before sniffing it closely. An insulted scoff drew her attention back to the woman who practically glared daggers at her.

"As if we would stoop to poisoning good foodstuffs when you handedly lost to Bunny-dono. Our Liege would horribly chastise us for doing such a thing."

Suitably scolded, she realized the folly in thinking such a thing. Poisoning their food would defeat the purpose of the orders they were given. Never mind the fact that if these entities had wanted them dead, it would have not been any problem at all for them to have done so. Nodding quietly in apology, she took a tentative bite of her skewer as it was rather hot.

"Mmm?!"

"Oh?!"

"What . . . ?!"

"Delicious!"

The group murmured things similar as they ate. The fish melted in their mouths and the savory flavors of butter, garlic, and herbs met their senses. It hardly needed chewing it was so tender! And the bones were so soft they hardly felt them. What kind of cook did they have? The vegetables were crisp, yet soft and the chicken was juicy, not dry.

This was the kind of food only nobles and wealthy merchants dined upon. Hazuki walked smoothly to the two fox kits and patted them on the head twice each. Her voice was kind and softer than the warrior woman they had faced earlier.

"Tend to Chronos-dono's odd guests and return to the shrines when he deems your services no longer required." the two little kitsune girls nodded enthusiastically before bowing to her and turning to begin pouring hot tea for them. Hazuki bowed to her peer. "Chronos-dono, I have my duties to attend to. Bunny-dono is present should you need anything."

He nodded and smiled at his peer. "Very well. Good fortune Hazuki-dono."

She left through the portal and it shut behind her. Chronos reached over and picked up the cup of tea on this armrest. Taking a moment to enjoy the fragrance, he sipped the hot beverage and nodded in approval. He silently hoped that this hospitality despite the circumstances of their intrusion and subsequent capture would render more benefits than problems. He had no intention of letting them to the living areas or other vital chambers of The Lair, but perhaps a little enlightenment would help issues down the road. Issues like the Cardinals.

* * *

 **Arwintar**

* * *

Draconis sighed and slumped in his chair as the last people left from trying to see or speak with him at the Singing Apple Pavilion. Lucia shook her head in sympathy. It had been four hours of repeated visitors and the same questions and propositions again and again.

"I don't know you managed that. I'd rather fight a horde of Displacer Beasts than have dealt with all those people."

Even though his face pointed straight up at the ceiling as he let his head fall back over the backrest of the chair he was reclined in; Draconis gave Lucia a sidelong glance.

"It's really not so different from the meetings I used to attend back in my soldiering days. Only real difference was not getting cussed at."

She chuckled at his blithe outlook.

"Well, nonetheless, well done. Hopefully the Bloody Emperor sees you sooner rather than later, time is rather limited. I wonder how our forces are doing in assisting the people?"

Draconis shook his head slightly and frowned. They both knew the answer to that. Even with proper training, time was not on their side. There was a large difference in training and actual battle. The old adage of "train to fight and fight like you trained" were not quite accurate. Sure, it certainly helped, but all of that only carried you so far.

Standing from his seat, he rolled his neck and twisted his back around. The sound of popping joints and vertebra a sign of just how long he'd been sitting in one spot. Looking to Lucia, he nodded once before heading toward the exit. Lucia shook her head as she shrugged her shoulders in amusement, but stood and began to follow him. The group of Foresight all scrambled to follow. Miranda had returned to the Magic Academy of the Empire at the end of the fight between Go Gin and Draconis, but mentioned that he had exclusive rights to one of the best rooms in the most upper crust of inns. As they pushed through the doors of the Singing Apple, they were boggled when they came out into the road.

"What? Where did they go?"

"I bet they went to the inn. He's been questioned and propositioned all day. I'd be exhausted after something like that." Hekkeran scratched his head as he voiced his opinion. Part of him really could not blame him. Fighting was one thing, but dealing with that level of people wanting to just meet you or take advantage of getting to know you? Maybe fame wasn't everything it was cracked up to be.

Imina frowned and practically glared at the bricked and worked stone sidewalks and roads.

"This worked stone makes it impossible to track them by footprints. They probably have a magic item making them blend in with the crowds."

Arche felt something tug on her boot and she looked down to see a small, furry creature. It looked like a fox, but the way it stared at her as he sat there made her think otherwise. It had a note in its muzzle

and it set the piece of parchment down on the ground before scampering off. Bending down, she took up the note apparent and read it through. Roberdyck noticed their youngest member's action and caught a glimpse of the fox kit scampering into the crowds.

"What's that Arche?" His question placed her at the center of their attention.

"It's from the spear woman Lucia. She says that they will be at their hotel rooms. They will talk to us again after their business with the Emperor."

* * *

 **Shining Leaf Inn**

* * *

The two Dragon Ascendants arrived with little preamble, dropping their [ _Invisibility_ ] spells in a nearby alley before coming out into the open again. The man attending the doorway recognized Draconis from the news couriers as the new Martial Lord and allowed him in without issue. Seeing the beautiful Lucia was accompanying him, he did not stop her either. She chuckled at his stiff, nervous professionalism in the face of the newest celebrity of Arwintar. Draconis merely shook his head in exhaustion.

As they approached the reception desk, people in the lobby stared and whispered. Those who had heard of the fight between Go Gin and Draconis were held in a bit of awe and rapture at his poise, the upright posture and his height. Anyone who had not heard of the fight wondered just who these two were.

"He's so tall . . ."

"Look at his posture, is he a noble?"

"That's impossible, even nobles don't have that kind of bearing."

"He's the new Martial Lord of the Grand Arena."

"Really? That cannot be, fighters in the arena are barbarians."

Both Draconis and Lucia smirked as they heard the last comment. Barbarians . . . How droll. These nobles and merchants knew nothing of barbarism. Nothing of wars and death. The killings fields of men and monster alike. Better off were they as ignorance is bliss.

The young receptionist knew about the impending arrival of the new Martial Lord and his description but had not realized just how tall the man was. She was petite and he towered above her. Trembling slightly, she bowed as she greeted him. When she spoke, it took all of her willpower to not stutter over her words. Even the most affluent nobility that could afford a room here did not have the overwhelming aura that this man did!

"Welcome to the Shining Leaf. We have been waiting your arrival Martial Lord. Your room key sir."

She held the key out for him, but could not stop the slight tremble in her hands. The keys jangled a bit and a few of the nearby patrons frowned. The echo of the keys seemed like screams in the otherwise quiet lobby. This was the best inn Arwintar had, and as such, the lack of grace and poise was offending. The receptionist grit her teeth in shame. She was no green rookie to the establishment, but never had she been in the presence of someone with such a powerful bearing! This man was out of all of their leagues.

The vermilion haired man smiled and took the keys from her, but surprised her when he took her hand in his with a gentle warmth that reminded her of her father.

"My thanks young lady. You need not worry about the views of those around us. I know my presence can be stifling. Be calm."

She meet his eyes and swallowed, they swirled with many colors! Yet they were warm and compassionate . . . understanding even! A wave of soothing magic flowed through her and she relaxed. What was this? As he removed his hand from hers, she fought the urge to sigh. Obviously, he had done something to assist her nerves . . . but he never spoke a word of magic or showed any signs of power being used. Was this just his charisma?

"You are most generous sir." Her word were soft, but he had heard her all the same. His smile grew and the feeling of swooning almost overtook her. He gave her a short bow and then nodded to the lavender haired woman beside him before proceeding up the stairs to the right.

Her co-worker, having stood right beside her, came to her side.

"Are you okay? I felt his presence too, what did he do?"

"I . . . don't know. But I feel centered . . . calm."

Draconis entered the room and shut the door behind him. He and Lucia had received adjoined rooms. The door connecting the two opened to reveal a highly entertained Lucia.

"Look at you lady killer. I wonder was your wife would say."

He gave her an annoyed look as he removed the armor he wore. Placing the adamantine swords into their inventory space, he sighed.

"Lucia, you are a friend and a mentor to me, but Artorias would have done the same for the young girl. Her aura is of a whole different caliber than ours. Dragons we may be, but her aura is one of a ruler supreme."

Lucia shrugged. She knew what he was saying was true. She had met Artorias once during one of the many Guild Wars. The woman was an absolute monster in the Guild Wars. The inspiration and rallying cry of her classes bolstered mass combat and PoPs forces like no other. It was no small wonder that Avalon had only lost two defensive battles out of hundreds. During offensive ones, their record was still impressive at 90 percent victory ratio over 500 battles where they were not at their home.

It was rather scary. Their [ _Awesome Aura_ ] and other Dragon Ascendant powers had ranges. Significant ranges, but they still had a limit. Artorias's ruler class auras had no apparent limit to its range other than line of sight. If you could see her or she could see you, you felt it. It was why she kept other powerful people around her, to dilute her ability and make it bearable to be around her. To Lucia, it was more like a curse than a blessing.

"I admit that is true. What are you doing Draconis?"

She tilted her head to the side in confusion as he took a seat cross legged on the floor. As she had pondered, he had shifted outfits. He wore an immaculately white and gold ensemble that consisted of a swallow tail coat with a double breasted design. Golden chains dangled symmetrically from button to button on the chest. His slacks were ironed and pressed with clear, crisp creases down the front of each leg. They were tucked into polished black boots that came to his knees. The sleeves of the coat were tucked into elbow length black gloves. The gloves had forearm guards of [ _Living Blue Soul_ ] that swirled with hues of azure magic. A full cloak held in place with platinum and red gold draped over his shoulders. He wore an ear piece that resembled a hawk's wing behind his right ear. The only thing that had not changed was the finery he wore. The necklace, earrings, rings, and choker all thrummed with powerful auras. They all seemed to glow.

"Meditating. You know of the legends of YGGDRASIL? The ones that stated that there were items of power with sentience and wills of their own?"

Suddenly nervous, she nodded cautiously.

"I have one of them. Watch the doors for me. The item demands an audience."

"Wha?!" She swiftly realized to her horror what he was getting at. She cast anti-divination magic at her highest Tiers and enchanted the doors and walls to be utterly sound proof. "Damn it Draconis!"

When she finished, she looked back only see that he had intertwined his fingers and held them in his lap. His breathing was steady, but shallow. The finery around his was glowing brightly.

Sentient Items, or SI's in YGGDRASIL were ultra rare, yet there were more of them than there were World Items. Many of them were also significantly weaker that World Items. Yet rumors spoke of a select number of them that were a World Item's equal, even if extraordinarily restricted in their use. Not to mention you had to have a strong enough willpower and stat block to not have the item rebel, or force you to do something it wanted instead. Damn devs!

Then again, if you got along with the Sentient Item, it could be a huge boon. She personally never wanted to risk it.

"What the hell did you find Draconis?"

Silence was her only answer.

* * *

 **Sentient Item Realm**

 **Music of Awesome – Valkyrie Profile Arrange Album: Epic Tale of a Holy Death**

 **Play?**

* * *

He had been here twice before.

The first time had been when he had found the item. It had been during his time rebuilding his dragon horde shortly after attaining the Dragon Ascendant class. He had followed an information clue on the forums of the game to a set of ruins in the deepest sections of an open area known back then as [ _The Fallen Kingdom of Dipan_ ]. The legends had described it as the lost holy grounds of King Barbarossa, who had challenged the gods and been swiftly judged and annihilated for such hubris.

The item he had been hunting for was one of those left behind from that battle. Having gained such a rare class in the Dragon Ascendant, he had no intention of getting killed and losing his progression and levels in that regard. He was adamant about not having to go through devouring his horde all over again. The item was said to preserve the record of the soul, and allow the possessor to choose which levels he lost instead of leaving it to chance upon death. That alone spoke more than gold and prismatic ores to him.

He had searched and pursued that rumor almost as if possessed.

After a vicious battle with the vengeful ghost of King Barbarossa himself, he had continued to search the area. The kingdom's capital which the item was rumored to be hidden in was massive. Nearly two times the the size of Tokyo in a one to one scale. It had taken him four months to find it.

He had fought nine other players who had also been hunting for the item. Of those other nine, three gave up completely after month two. Four of them had fought each other and him to the death for searching rights. The last two had merely been information brokers and sown both confusion and dissent among the rest of those hunting for the artifact.

In truth, it was several pieces in a set. A set which he had fought the others over and won. He had found the first piece. The necklace and choker. The others were the earrings, ear piece, and bracelets. The rings were last.

[ _The Finery of Valhalla_ ].

When he had donned all the pieces he had been transported here.

[ _The Halls of Valhalla_ ].

The Sentient Item's Domain.

It was beyond colossal in scale! Pillars and opulence abounded. Rich, scarlet velvet carpets covered polished Ice Marble slabs of stone. The ceilings rose forty meters into the air and were adorned like what would have been old world cathedral style ceiling paintings. They depicted wars and battles of heroes long forgotten. Chandeliers of gold and rainbow diamonds, sconces of shining bronze and silver, furs of wild animals, racks of gloriously kept weapons and armor abounded. Footsteps echoed in these hyper massive chambers.

One could see the spectral images of warriors and mages alike, drinking and making merry. Or they were caring for their gear, or resting peacefully. Each and every one of them of varying power levels, but all chosen. Thousands upon tens of thousands of them . . . and yet the space of the halls was still cavernous!

It had taken his breath away. Who ever had developed this item and it's inner world was absolutely out of his or her mind. The level of care put into this was beyond his comprehension at the time.

The second time he had come here had been when he had been slain during the end of the Dragonsong War saving Artorias and his friends from Avalon. _That_ had not been fun. He pushed that memory aside.

As he retraced his steps, something felt distinctly different. The spectral images seemed solid, real, tangible even. The voices and discussions were clearer. Some of them even noticed him and waved or cheered. A few of the others even scoffed or cast judgmental gazes his way. A few even bowed in respect. This was very different and it unnerved him.

 _No, this is reality now . . . which means . . . damn . . ._

This was Valhalla, the realm of the dead.

He was one of the living.

His soul had been summoned here.

He remembered the outdoor stairway that ascended to the temple above the main, hallowed halls. The winds were strong and he paused to glance about as his cloak billowed in the winds. Floating islands. The halls were among the skies and below you could see the world of men untold miles below. It made one feel a bit insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

Turning his attention back to the temple before him, he pressed on. Asgardian Wardens, Level 95 Holy Warriors with low level Divinity, rendering them immune to anything below level 70, guarded the entrance. They allowed him passage, requested his arms. He relinquished his swords with no argument. He had been through this before. No weapons were allowed beyond this point and it did not matter who you were.

Entering into the temple proper, there was a stark lack of occupants.

The walls, pillars, and ceilings were pure white, so much so that it almost hurt to even gaze directly upon them. Closing his eyes, he allowed his [ _Blindsense_ ] to take over for his eyes. Slowly, reverently, he strode across the flooring. He could feel the sconces in their pillar stands as the sounds of his footsteps echoed from the objects inside the chambers. There were three reclining seats spread out before him. Each of them held a person upon them. His nose could tell each of them apart. One smelled like morning grasses and dew. The middle smelled of noon summer's days and sunlight. Of the three, the final smelt ominous if one could describe a scent in such a way. Perhaps it was more like dusk?

Regardless, these three entities had met him both previous times as well. The well keepers of every warrior and mage here. They were vaunted beings in the game and in legends. Each was the equivalent of a level 100 Field Boss. He could not win against them even with his entire panoply equipped.

He knelt before them with his head bowed low. No words came from his lips. He did not need to speak to let them know he was present and waiting for their words. They would address him when they were ready, and not a moment before. The three figures glanced back and forth at each other before nodding as one. The one of dusk dimmed the light in the room a fraction. From his right, a cold, hard voice addressed him.

"It has been a long time bearer of the Finery. Knowest why we have summoned you forth?"

"I do not."

There was a slight scoff at his forthright answer. A slight giggle from his left preceded a younger, more light hearted voice.

"Please, mercy upon him dear sister. He is being honest with us. The least we can do is be patient with him."

The sister of dusk shook her head and waved away her sibling's concerns. "Fie."

"Please disregard their banter Draconis Brightblade." the middle entity spoke. Her voice was clarion clear and almost motherly. Yet he knew that she was perhaps the strongest of the three. "We called you here because we sensed a change most concerning in your bearing."

He canted his head like that of a puppy trying to figure out what a human was telling it. His frown marred his features. A light laugh came from all three of them before they settled into a more serious tone. The bubbly one from earlier spoke with a grave serious mien that made one forget her merry nature.

"We are aware that things have changed since your arrival in this New World. Aye, we have borne witness to the events leading up to now with interest. The ancient ways and powers have shifted. Many of which are no longer present."

Draconis slowly nodded as he took in this knowledge.

"The mortals of this New World are terribly weak and few dare claim the title of 'hero' when they are but motes upon the stratum. Among titans of power such as yourself and those that came before you, this world has yet to witness a true calamity as beheld by you and yours long before now."

His frown deepened. Just what did she mean by that? The events during the game of YGGDRASIL? The Dragonsong War? The Fall of the Valkyrie patch? The Ragnarok Junction event? Certainly if any of those happened in this New World, the humans of this continent would perish without effort.

The middle entity leaned forward in her reclined position. Her voice was laced with understanding, compassion, and sadness.

"No young Draconis. We speak of the war you fought before even coming to our own realms."

Ice shot through Draconis's very being. He stared at the floor wide eyed as his mind raced back to memories he would rather never see again. The blankets of death and destruction. The lack of sunlight for countless miles. The carnage and screams of the dead and dying with no hope. The forgotten prayers of those who still kept some semblance of faith. The hellish war of mega-corporations.

"The Arcology War. The war upon Earth."

He clenched a fist and grit his teeth, only to have the dusky one speak again, her voice was infused with something rare for her. Sympathy and understanding.

"Even I do not condone such a massive waste of lives. We are aware because we have seen. Seen the depths of your soul upon taking up the Finery. As Choosers of the Slain we can peer into the depths of the spirit to ascertain your worthiness. As we did so long ago, we learned of this past of yours."

The usually bright one spoke again from his left and her voice was sad.

"To think that mankind would fall into such despondent and arrogant treatment of their own kind is abhorrent. Yet you, with the support of a loved one dearest to thine heart, along with those standing with you sought a better way, even if only as an escape. Thou couldest have merely fallen by the wayside, yet instead you sough to inspire and reach out in succor. It is that quality within thine heart which appealed to us."

It was true.

When he had obtained { _The Finery of Valhalla_ ], he had been given a set of questions. A series of tests more mental than physical. Had this been their "peering" into his soul? He did not know, but given the circumstances and the background written into the item and the surrounding legends, it made sense. While he had never been a real believer in any higher powers, the tales and mythologies had entertained him greatly. Yet now . . .

With this it was certain to him. Gods were real now. . . . and he was before three of them. Regardless of their hierarchy in the tiers of divinity, they were goddesses. The fact that he could not best them told him enough. There was always . . . _always_ a bigger fish.

"We do not mean to bring about the return of such harsh memories Draconis Brightblade. We do intend to warn thee of a change within you."

He mutely nodded.

"Arriving in this New World, your soul, despite its brightness, is afflicted with dragon's spirit. This combination is conflicting within you. Humans are not meant to tolerate such longevity. You must adjust or be consumed by the dragon within. Be glad that thou modeled thyself after those of more benevolent tendencies. Filled with pride and power are they, but also understanding and long suffering. The dragon within you admires your soul, but its pride suffers little for fools and evils."

The middle goddess spoke again with certainty and conviction.

"Your righteousness is your strong point, but it can also be your greatest flaw. Do not become arrogant, lest you become a tyrant of a different nature."

"As Odin did." he voiced with grave tones. It was a part of the Ragnarok Junction event. All-Father Odin had deemed mankind unfit to continue existing, and sought divine judgment. Half the gods rallied to him, while others refused, seeing hopeful lights within the haze of darkness of the nine worlds. The battles during the events were fierce.

The three goddesses nodded in agreement with his words.

"We will be watching you, bearer of The Finery. Temper thine anger and righteousness lest you lose control to the dragon within."

He nodded but bowed lower before speaking.

"Please, I would ask a favor. If you would be merciful."

The three glanced between one another before nodding. He could feel it through his abilities.

"Is there a way to come to terms with my dragon blood? To come to harmony?"

"There are two among the New World who have done so ahead of you. Seek them out to better understand your new nature, that you might avoid madness."

He felt the world around him shift as he was sent back. The world became a bit dirtier, or was it earthier? The brightness dulled dramatically. His breathing was notably heavier and he could feel the presence of Lucia nearby on a chair. The wave of concern and annoyance emitting from her being was rather palpable. As he opened his eyes, a pillow smashed him in the face.

"What in the hells was that?! Sentient Item? Are your crazy?!"

Not bothering to mess with the pillow now in his lap, he gave her an apologetic expression. A lantern was lit in the room and the air felt cooler. Was it night time?

"How long was I out of it?"

Lucia fairly smoldered at him. Her orange and blue eyes flared at him in annoyance. A low growl warned him of her mood. It sounded more dragon than human. He leaned back a bit in wary caution.

"Five hours."

?!

Really? Five hours? Well he had been walking throughout the halls for a long time. But still!

"I apologize. I did not realize."

Lucia huffed and sat on the floor in front of him. It felt rather odd if someone was watching them. Such a lavish room and its occupants merely sat crossed legged on the floor, staring at each other like rivals at a gambling den.

"Alright, I think I at the very least, deserve an explanation."

He fought with the idea of telling Lucia everything. Some things . . . yes, she definitely deserved to know. But some details were better left vague.

"I have a Sentient Item. It called me into its realm and the entities that preside over it gave me warnings."

Lucia didn't buy it, and openly glared at her junior Dragon Ascendant.

"Oh really? What kind of warning?"

As he began to explain the rough outline of the conflict with his soul and the dragon he now was, he also began to wonder.

 _If this is my struggle . . . what about Ainz?_

He shuddered to imagine it.

* * *

 **Imperial Castle**

* * *

Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix sat in his chambers with Baziwood and the other Imperial Knights. Two advisors also were present within the chamber.

"So, that is the plan for the meeting with the new Martial Lord?"

His question was met with nods of approval. The only notable exception was Leinas. Tomorrow, he would send forth a courier to escort the man and the woman attending with him to the castle. The Imperial Knights would be present along with a small cadre of dignitaries to record the posterity of the occasion.

During this meeting, Fluder would analyze the man and woman while Jircniv himself would proposition to the man to bring him into the folds of the Empire and away from that old hag Draudillon. This would be his first step to potentially ending the wars with Re-Estize altogether. He would be offered a generous stipend and prestige to go along with it.

He was confident that whatever the Empire could offer would far outstrip the Dragon Kingdom and their dying nation. Why fight for a losing kingdom when he could join a nation in a Golden Age? Any individual could see the benefits of such an arrangement. This man far outclassed even Re-Estize's Gazef Stronoff by a clear margin. The man would pay for the affront of refusing his offer years ago.

This would be the first step into a new age!

* * *

 **Cyber Cookies for those who might guess who Draconis met with!**

 **Reader Review Responses**

* * *

 **UndeadLord22:** Yeah, I'm alright. I was farther inland, but hurricanes are massive things. I just don't see why people IGNORE them and the warning to GET OUT. Mother nature, if she wants you gone, you are gone. She doesn't care. I don't ignore weather warnings.

 **Wacko12:** You will find out in future chapters.

 **Rmarcano321:** Some will change, others may not.

 **RyujiVantek:** I did think of something like that, but it seemed out of place for Cocytus.

 **R.E.W.4:** You and many other readers my friend. XD

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Thank you for your understanding. Everyone is asking about Esdeath. Means to me at least that I've done her justice and kept her interesting.

 **Awayuki:** You shall find out soon enough! Thanks for dropping in as usual.

 **Dimension Distorter:** Will he? Won't he? Read on my friend.

 **MadDan90:** Hehahahaeh. Cracks Knuckles evilly. Muahahaha.

 **Varcisis:** Yeah, I felt the Lizardman Arc in the Light Novels was just jarring to me. Even knowing Ainz is a villain protagonist, the issues I had were too much. I just adjusting things here and there. The ending and beginning were just out of nowhere, even in the Light Novels.

 **Wildtrance:** He will indeed.

 **GenerationZero:** You raise VERY valid concerns with regards to balancing out New World entities and the Players of YGGDRASIL. Hopefully I am able to do so with panache and grace, without making things seem too Mary or Gary Stu.

 **Omegadramon2:** Yes I am keeping up with that series and I find it absolutely hilarious.

 **Johnathan-Mandrake:** Thanks for the compliment and I hear ya! Die Hard: With a Vengeance!

 **Guest 1:** Oh do I have plans for that Elven King . . . . MuhahahahaHAHAHAHA!

 **Guest 2:** A point that I had not given much thought too when I was writing it. Thank you!

 **Fanguy59:** Thanks for stopping in! I hope you continue to check in with the story!

 **PossessedHunter:** Thank you very much! I bow to you in appreciation. You are correct in your observation. It is indeed within Draconis's character.


	31. Chapter 29: Battle of WordsIdeals Pt 1

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimer**

Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress.

Well everyone! Here it is at last. The talks between Draconis and Jircniv! I know that it's been a long road and I've taken a while to get here, but here it is in all its glory.

* * *

 **Chapter 29: A Battle of Words and Ideals Part I**

* * *

The following morning saw Lucia in a significantly peeved mood. Draconis's revelations about his finery and its power made her strangely mad, though not necessarily at him. The developers had gone and truly made a mess of things with items like [ _Finery of Valhalla_ ]. To her, it was obvious that it did more than just preserve his selected job class levels upon death, but only he knew what it did exactly. Whatever it was, he wasn't saying either.

Moreover, she was concerned about what the entities of the item had told him about his dragon spirit. She knew that it was possible to get along with. She herself had essentially become the dragon in its entirety and it had not deeply altered her from her old personality. Granted, her dragon side got along with her splendidly. So for her it was simple to make the transition. Part of her wondered just what the dragon spirit of his would give him difficulty with. He was a good man at heart, that much she knew. Yet he was also harboring old wounds that she was not privy to. That was something only those of Avalon and his wife truly understood.

He kept the white and gold with black boots and gloves ensemble from the day before, but added the cloak he had for formal occasions at Avalon. The Pendragon Blue and gold embroidered cloak held his Coat of Arms. A single, thin blade overlaid with a shield with a dragon winding its way around the blade like a spiral staircase. The main body of the coat of arms lay cradled the within the dragon's four wings. The dragon looked at you as it rested its head at the center of the cross guard.

She decided to change into something a bit more formal and less combative. Her clothing was that of formal slacks that stopped just short of her ankles. Her feet were adorned in pitch black flats and a pair of ruby anklets adorned her ankles. She wore a flared blouse with short sleeves and hoop bracelets on her wrists. Over the blouse she wore a tight fitting vest of black with red inner collar and a cape that draped over her left shoulder. It was held in place with stay pins in the lapels of the vest. To her left hip was a slender short sword and a small, rod. Said rod was actually a collapsible spear of Legendary Tier, crafted of Star Steel and Orichalcum and imbued with the fire element.

They were taking morning meal downstairs, and the looks the nobles and merchants in the lobby and dining areas watched them both with hushed tones and conspiratory whispers.

"Who are they?" Some asked in genuine interest.

"What manner of dress are they wearing? That's not like anything around these regions." Others would comment in either jealous tones or wonderment.

"Look at the quality . . . who was their tailor?"

"Isn't that the new Martial Lord? I would not have thought a brute able to act so civilized!" Some of the more pompous ones muttered.

Draconis dabbed his mouth with the linen napkin that had been provided them. The meal was okay at best. The foods The Lair's cooks could prepare were far better than this. Even Draudillon's personal cooking staff had done better than this. Not that it was not well prepared and presented, but the flavors were terribly bland. For a city in a Golden Age, the trends for culinary developments were lacking. Probably the best part of the meal was the chilled juice and milk.

Actually, he was more surprised at the manners that Lucia was showing. A small smile drifted across his face. She noticed and smirked.

"I have learned proper etiquette during all my years here Draconis."

His smile did not subside and he spoke with a humorous tone.

"I can see that Lucia. Yet it does little to quell the humor in this moment. You seem like a different woman altogether."

She sipped her drink before setting it down and fighting the temptation to kick him under the table.

"What about you? Surely the Queen of Knights taught you etiquette. Or did she just do a swell job of housebreaking you?"

Draconis smiled, but feigned a wounded expression before setting a free hand over his heart in mock agony.

"You wound me!" He chuckled a bit despite the barb. "Though you would not be entirely wrong Lucia. Artorias did bring out the finer things in me. Even if it was a learning experience for both of us."

His voice grew a bit wistful. Lucia knew she had touched a soft spot with the way his eyes grew a bit distant. No doubt he was thinking of his beloved. She felt a bit bad about poking fun at his married life. It was clear to her that he dearly loved the woman and was loved dearly in return. It was something she herself wanted, but did not dare to get her hopes up. Besides, she was more free spirited. Still, she did know when she stepped over the line.

"I'm sorry. I did not mean to mock your marital status."

He shook his head negatively with a small grin.

"No offense taken. If I cannot laugh about the quirks of my relationship with Artorias then I am in dire need of a rethinking about our marriage. I do miss her, but we each have responsibilities around us and to ignore them would be foolhardy. We'll make up for the separation when we have the time and luxury."

He took another mouthful and chewed thoughtfully before frowning. Swallowing, he sighed.

"All the food will taste this way for me . . . won't it?"

She knew what he was alluding too. Their metallic dragon blood rendered their tastes different. They found that gemstones were far more flavorful than the most savory herbs and spices could ever offer. All foods would taste bland by comparison.

As Dragon Ascendants, they actually no longer really had to eat or sleep. Even breathing could be an option if it called for it. They were luxuries now . . . not necessities. As ascended dragons, they were semi-divine. On another plane than mortals. They could still be killed, but otherwise, their lifespans were so long that even the longer lived races like the elves would pass them by in the circle. What was a blessing in the game was now more akin to a curse.

She nodded a bit sadly.

"Indeed. Though it does mean that we can pretty much live off of whatever we wish . . . well almost. Some things just strike me as off putting. Like dirt."

That got a reaction out of him. He gave her an odd expression, a brow twitched upward in disbelief.

"Dirt? Really?"

She looked to the side abashed.

"I was curious . . ."

He coughed into a fist and cleared his throat slightly to mask it. Yet she knew that on the inside, he was cackling in laughter at her.

 _At least he's not depressed about being apart from his wife anymore._

The two dragons finished their breakfast and Lucia discreetly cast [ _Phantom Dialogue_ ] to mask their conversation again.

"So Draconis, how will you go about speaking with the Bloody Emperor? He's young, and ambitious on top of it."

He frowned and crossed his arms in thought. Both of them maintained their poise while talking, as the spell changed its appearances based loosely on the postures and movements of the those under its effects. As they were in a high class environment, they could not afford to be more relaxed as they had been at the Singing Apple Pavilion.

"Honestly I don't have much to go on. I was hoping to have your help in regards to how he thinks and behaves. Perhaps your friend Miranda would know a tidbit or two?"

Lucia thought about that for a moment before answering.

"I can say that he is obsessively fixated on appearances. He knows quite well how his actions reflect the image of the Empire as a whole. How familiar are you with how Jircniv acquired the title of Bloody Emperor?"

Draconis had heard a few varying accounts from those that had bombarded him the day before now, but they were all fairly consistent in at least one fashion, he did not care about your status if you were incompetent. But bloody upheavals did not end well for the one to take charge.

"I know a few accounts, but nothing concrete."

Lucia nodded in understanding. "Well, for the most part, most accounts are more or less right about the methods. However, the nobility was the most affected here. Not to mention he has no other relatives other than the many illegitimate children he has with the harem he possesses."

Draconis frowned at that bit of information.

"Are the children . . . ?" She knew where Draconis was going with that question and held a hand up to placate his worries and stop his thoughts short.

"They do not want for anything, but he shows no interests in raising them. They are merely the results of his sowing of wild oats as entertainment."

Draconis took a breath and sighed through his nostrils. That was outside what he should mess with while hear. If they were the children of his many consorts and they were at least provided for, there was little he should do. He did still feel some anger at the thought of not being a father figure to the children. Especially if the women who provided him with such entertainment did so willingly and conscious of the possibilities of pregnancy.

It still rankled him a bit though. Nodding with a fair amount of sad resignation to that fact, he refocused his attention on the other things Lucia began to speak of.

"Miranda has told me that he began the violent and brutal purge of much of the nobility and his other relatives at the tender age of twelve. According to her, his mother had been accused of assassinating the previous Emperor."

Draconis nodded as he processed this new information. A typical political drama filled with blood and betrayal. While he did not pretend to not see the unfortunate side of the coin that Jircniv had been dealt, this was a different matter. Though it did give him an idea as to how the young Emperor could respond to a request of aide.

"I see. Unfortunate and tragic, but how does he view the other nations? You said he was ambitious, in what way?"

Lucia eyed him evenly.

"He has been waging annual confrontations on the Katze Plains. The call it a war, but it's really just a methodical culling of the Kingdom of Re-Estize's manpower during harvest season. It is gradually taking its toll, as the Empire's forces are actually career soldiers, and not farmer conscripts."

Draconis put a hand to his chin in thought as he frowned. It was a harsh, pragmatic battle tactic with the clear intent of winning with as little national loss as possible. If he looked at it from purely a military aspect, it was brilliant. Yet the circumstances and the reasons were also something he needed to take into consideration. Obviously the two nations had issue with each other. What of Jircniv's view of the Dragon Kingdom?

Before they could discuss further, the doors to the chambers opened and the occupants of the room fell silent as a set of knights from the castle arrived. Adorned with the colors of the Empire of red and gold, they seemed at least well trained. Still . . .

"So many just for us?" He muttered so only Lucia could hear. She smiled back at him.

"He is ambitious, not stupid."

He shrugged lightly. He drained his glass of the remaining liquid and stood slowly. He walked over to Lucia and offered his hand. She chuckled a little but took his offer and stood with him. Bereft of arms and armor in addition to the attire they both wore, the knights of the Empire were a bit of a loss. They had been ordered to bring the Martial Lord to see the Emperor, not escort someone dressed better than nobility and his lady.

The captain of the group stepped forward.

"We seek the Martial Lord."

Heads turned to the two standing at their table. The man had donned a cloak that draped to his calves. The group paused as they stared at the crest upon the Pendragon Blue fabric rimmed with gold.

An outline of a dragon with folded wings on either side that cradled the sword and shield like a babe. Yet the wings had swords in the place of the leathery membranes and runic writing that none of them could read that ran along the edges of each blade. The entire thing seemed to gleam with the light.

The two approached them and the captain could feel his men tense despite no apparent show of arms. When they stopped a few feet from them, the crimson haired man spoke.

"I am him." He cast his gaze across the whole of them. Each and every one of them felt like they were being surveyed. "I take it that you are all here to summon me to meet with Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix."

He nodded and the Martial Lord smiled easily.

"Very well then. Lead the way."

* * *

 **Castle Proper**

* * *

Jircniv sat upon his throne in rather pleased anticipation. Gathered were what few nobles were left who were competent in their duties. Commoners who he had placed duties to as they were fit to carry them out. Many of his knights and all of the Imperial Knights were also in attendance.

Man of those present whispered to each other as they awaited the arrival of the new Martial Lord and his audience with the Emperor. This was quite the occasion. Among a number of them, were a fair portion of detractors though. These smaller groups found the way in which this newcomer had demanded an audience with the Emperor utterly audacious and arrogant.

"He brandishes a sword and demands audience with the Emperor? That's tantamount to a threat if you ask me!"

"I witnessed him at the Grand Arena against Go Gin. He is unlike anything I've seen!"

"Bah, a barbarian with a sword who can beat a monster, who cares? They all die the same."

"Go Gin was a war troll though, no one is able to best him, much less slay the previous Martial Lord. Surely that means something?"

Jircniv found the mutterings of those around the chambers both informative and yet unimportant at the same time. It did not matter what they all thought so long as it benefited the Empire. How could those simpletons who decried such potential be worthy of running the nation? Perhaps another purge was in order? No, that time of bloody weed pulling was behind him. Now was time for other means. This man would be the first step in that direction.

To the left of him stood Fluder Paradyne the Triad Magic Caster. The elderly man in his white and necklace of crystal gems bespoke his magic prowess that few dared compare themselves to even coming close to. On Jircniv's right was Baziwood and the other Imperial Knights in their adamantine armor. Here within these halls, no one dared make a move against him. The prospect of being cut down by one of the four strongest in the nation or blasted by the magical might of the Court Magician was deterring enough.

Baziwood felt like this meeting would show just what kind of man this Scarlet Swordsman was. The fact that he had shrugged off a mortal wound was disturbing. He wondered if the man had a Talent that allowed him such amazing recovery. Barring that reason, he wondered if the man had a powerful magic item in his possession. Either one would be incredible, though if it was a Talent, then this man was a must recruit.

Nimble and Enec had both pondered about this Scarlet Swordsman. A man who could fight a war troll like Go Gin and win single handed was no mere swordsman. The Martial Art that the man had unleashed had been unlike any other he had witnessed. If Nimble was guessing that attack correctly, the area within those flashing crescent circles would cleave through anyone in the effect area. Seeing how it had ended the previous Martial Lord, neither of them had any doubt that it would take another Martial Art to counter it. Anyone caught within would suffer a similar fate.

Nimble had cringed at the thought. He could fell companies with that level of skill. Even if he could only use it once a day, it could turn the tides of a battle on its head. Such a tactical asset could not be ignored. The Emperor was wise to want to recruit the man. The Imperial Knight ventured that they could absolutely crush the Re-Estize Kingdom with such a warrior.

Enec, as The Unassailable had been impressed with the man's ability to defend himself against the war troll with such sublime technique. The sword to him had always been an offensive instrument not meant to defend. Yet he had displayed such an incredible defensive posture and technique that he could not help but think that the man had taken what hits he had on purpose to see just how badly Go Gin could hurt him. Especially after the man had displayed healing and burning blood from a blow that would have killed any other mortal.

Leinas shivered internally. This man was a monster. A monster in human guise. That [ _Message_ ] that she had received from Miranda the Mad right after the proclaimed victory of the Scarlet Swordsman against Go Gin did little to assuage her concerns. How was a man so martially powerful going to help her issue? Her curse was not curable even by Fluder Paradyne! When he had shrugged off an otherwise killing blow from the war troll, she immediately knew that he could not be human! Her instincts from her time shunned for her cursed face from that fiend, the time from being exposed to the reality of those around her. She had a relatively keen sense of people now. The liars and false concern from those who knew her ugly curse make her keen to liars and people who were not who they proclaimed to be.

It was not perfect by any means, but really now . . . burning blood? Regeneration faster than a war troll? That was no magic item. It was . . . it HAD to be an inhuman trait. Baziwood's thought process of a possible Talent was feasible, but anyone with that level of Talent would not be a darkhorse in the world. No, this man had to be inhuman. As the only real Imperial Knight who had fought and killed a powerful inhuman monster and now suffered because of it . . .

 _He can't be human. What is he? How can Miranda of the Magic Academy be so sure that he would be able to help me? Perhaps he knows someone?_

She knew one thing for certain. If that man drew his sword against Jircniv, she wasn't about to die for the man. His level of swordsmanship was absolutely top notch, and seeing him fight Go Gin had been an eye opener. This man was either an incredibly hard worker, or a sword prodigy.

Everyone quieted as the doors to the chambers opened to admit one of the Knights sent to summon the man to the Emperor. He bowed deeply before stepping aside.

"The Martial Lord has arrived Your Eminence."

The man that entered into the chambers and the lady to his side were not what anyone had expected to see. He carried himself with well defined poise and had a bearing about him that could only be described as engulfing. His steps were crisp and purposeful. The clothes he wore took them by surprise. They had not seen such masterfully tailored clothing. Sleek and elegant and the cloak he wore gave it all a majestic kind of appearance. As he walked by, those that could see the emblem upon the back of the cloak began to whisper among each other.

"What kind of emblem is that?"

"Is that a uniform? Is he some kind of noble?"

"Is this a joke? Is this the Martial Lord?"

"Who is that woman with him?"

Lucia's own clothing received odd looks. It was not because she wore slacks and a vest, but her bearing was similar to Draconis's, yet different. Her poise was like a foil to him and though she seemed less refined, there was certainly an aura of self confidence and an awareness of the social situation to mind herself. Perhaps she was a subordinate? A comrade?

The two stopped midway from the doors to the throne that Emperor Jircniv sat upon. Draconis placed his sword hand upon his left breast and inclined his head in respect. Lucia did the same. The act was practiced and smooth, but a few of those spectating could not help but be conflicted.

"He does not bow or kneel to the Emperor?"

"How dare he?"

The older veterans of the political affairs saw something else. Those of many, many years in the political game saw the confidence in his eyes and self discipline in his body language. This man was no shrinking violet to the presence of powerful individuals. To them, it was obvious that he had walked many years in the circles of people of equal caliber to their emperor. These clues, partnered with his clothing and cloak made them all wonder who this man really was.

Count Femel stood behind several others present for the whole meeting and silently wondered about this man. He had not been at the Grand Arena, but had swiftly heard the tales. Wild ones at that. Yet this man could not have possibly won against Go Gin. He had even sent an investigator to the Arena, but Osk himself had proclaimed that the war troll had indeed been felled and subsequently raised back to life on the man's order as a part of the deal the two had struck.

 _What manner of deal did they make? Could he be some kind of demi-human sympathizer? To be killed and then brought back takes extraordinary funding! Was this all a set up?! I must get to the bottom of this! The Emperor will surely change his view of me when I reveal this man's plot!_

Draconis took in the architecture that he could without moving his head about. The designs and style reminded him of studies and findings that Galahad had shown him during the time when the Knight of the Round was constructing the throne room in Avalon.

 _Lucia wasn't joking about going through a Golden Age. It truly is impressive. They are definitely better off than the Dragon Kingdom. Then why is it they hardly send aid to them? The annual battle cannot possibly put that great a drain on their resources._

He took the time to examine those that were standing to the right of Jircniv on this throne. Automatically, he registered Leinas Rockbruise as she was the only female among the Imperial Knights. His Holy Knight and Cleric levels both registered a glowing mark of taint upon her. However, he tensed slightly in surprise as he detected a completely different, twisted existence of taint and evil below them. Even though he managed to school his reaction, Lucia picked up on his sudden unease and change in scent.

" _Draconis? You alright?"_ she voiced her concern via a [ _Message_ ].

" _My class abilities triggered with a level of force I did not expect here. It took me off guard . . . given the situation."_

" _Which ones?"_

His mental voice hardened as he answered her inquiry.

"[Detect Evil] _. . ."_ She began to retort about how there were evils everywhere with people in politics when he let the other shoe drop. _"and_ [Detect Profane]."

[ _Detect Evil_ ] was one thing. Evils could be found all around them and human nature was wild and varied. However, one could not just run about slaying and judging every single evil found. Most people would not understand anyone judging or killing their friend, neighbor, or family without due evidence to prove it. It was one of the many reasons that rules and laws existed.

[ _Detect Profane_ ] however . . . Lucia gulped.

 _An abomination . . . here?!_ The profane were things like zombies, ghasts, ghouls, and other necromantic constructs. Chimeras and aberrations, twisted, corrupted vile beings of once innocent natural beings. Demons and devils were also counted among the collection of existences that were considered profane. She was rather amazed that he had not drawn steel then and there.

" _I have learned to lower my immediate reactions to violent response whenever they both activate when I have Akame or Kurome with me. Same thing with Esdeath. It was especially harsh whenever I met with Momonga or anyone in Ainz Ooal Gown save for a select few. But this? Here in a human nation's capital? In the castle of their Emperor?"_

She mentally nodded in agreement. This was not what she had expected today either. Lucia smirked slightly before answering him.

" _Well bravo for holding your cool. How do you want to play this now?"_

" _No changes for the time being. I'll send Kurome and Akame to investigate. You hear me you two?"_

There were two mental voices of acknowledgement in their conversation before they cut the magic completely. She was pretty sure those two would not hurt anyone, merely case out what it was that Draconis had felt, but even so . . .

 _I hope they don't trigger anything . . ._

Draconis took a steadying breath, and then opened the first words of dialogue between them and the Emperor.

"Emperor Jircniv Rune Farlord El Nix, I thank you for this audience on such short notice."

The man's words held a weight to them that received nods of approval from fair share of those present. His voice was strong and assured, much like his poise. He articulated well, surprising a few present who thought him nothing but a mere combat brute in fancy dress. No, this man was learned as well.

To the interest of those present, Jircniv did not respond first, but Fluder.

"Young man, I do not know where you hail from, but why do you not show the respect the Emperor deserves? You nod when one should bow or kneel. You hold yourself like one who is learned and as such you should know the etiquette."

Draconis nodded shallowly, acknowledging the Court Magician.

"You are sound in your reasoning Fluder Paradyne. My oaths forbid me from bending the knee in fealty anyone but the one I have sworn my oaths to, or in the exception of in sincere apology for wrongs sown."

The declaration intrigued Jircniv and many others present. Femel frowned.

"What kind of oaths?" Fluder spoke in curiosity. "What is your name? Or do you merely exist as a moniker given by others?"

"I am Draconis Brightblade. I am the Knight Most Heavenly of Avalon. My sword and my life belong to its Queen."

Those present began to feverishly whisper among each other. Jircniv and the rest frowned slightly. No one had heard of this place he claimed loyalty to.

"Avalon? A foreign nation no doubt, but where does your home hail? I have many representatives abroad in our fellow human nations, but not one has ever reported about an Avalon."

Draconis nodded once, and that is when Jircniv and those with him at his throne noticed it. His eyes swirled in multiple colors as a rainbow. Fluder immediately grew intrigued. As differing eye colors were a representation of power, a man with eyes like that had to have immense power. Yet looking upon these two, he could see absolutely nothing of their powers. It was obvious that they both possessed something that was blocking his ability. These two were no strangers to those with the powers that could see the unseen.

"It pains me to say, but I am separated from my Queen's homeland at current. I have found myself in the Dragon Kingdom to your south and have seen the plight of its people. Thusly have I rendered aid, but even my forces cannot be at every village and town to protect its citizenry."

Jircniv silently cursed. He knew where this was going. So the rumors were true, he was helping that hag. To his right, the Imperial Knights mentally grimaced. Normally Jircniv was very meticulous about his presentation to people. He would smile even in unfavorable situations in order to maintain the advantage for the sake of the Empire, but Draudillon and the Dragon Kingdom were one of the few sore points. The other two being Renner, the Golden Princess of Re-Estize and Calca Bessarez of Roble. All three women were on his top most despised people.

"I see Martial Lord. I can hazard a guess as to why it is you have come here. However, let us set aside that matter for a moment. I wish to learn more about the man that brought an end to the previous Martial Lord's reign in the Grand Arena."

He snapped his fingers and servants brought out well cushioned chairs. The two glanced at the seats and then once to each other. Both of them took a seat at the same instant. Lucia sat a bit for relaxed, but Draconis took on an aristocratic air as he crossed a leg over a knee and intertwined his fingers before setting his hands in his lap as he leaned back into the chair ever so slightly. He wanted to know what the hell it was that he sensed. So if it meant enduring a bit of chewing the fat with the Emperor, he could play along while Akame and Kurome did their work.

"Very well Emperor Jircniv. Let us talk."

* * *

 **Down Below**

* * *

Akame and Kurome slithered among the shadows as they made their way through the depths of the capital's tunnels. Whenever guards were encountered, they took to the ceilings and the darkened corners of the architecture. Whenever magic was encountered, they utilized [ _Shadow Walker_ ] to become shadow and meld through and past whatever magical wards were strewn about the place.

Not that any of them could actually hurt the two sisters. Yet alerting the soldiers and mages here that there were intruders would do their master no good at all.

Descending into the depths, they were a bit confused as to why a small number of mages were watching a collective of skeletons with farming tools tilling soil. Were they trying to prove something? Was this some kind of experiment?

Kurome ghosted along the upper corner of the ceiling and walls. As she carefully avoided too much exposure to the torch lights as not to drop out of her [ _Shadow Walker_ ] form, she made use of her superior eye sight to read the notes that the mage was taking. She had to suppress a giggle.

" _How cute sis! They're trying to see if skeletons turn into zombies when close to a corpse!"_

Akame mentally snorted at her sister's amusement. The very concept was novel, but misguided. There were ways to transform a skeleton into a zombie, but it involved several different spells of varying Tier levels. Overall, it was too much work for not enough reward if you were a necromancer.

Firstly, the spell [ _Create Flesh_ ] would have to be cast upon a skeleton with enough bones to make a complete entity. Be it humanoid or otherwise. Then a magic caster would need to utilize [ _Animate Dead_ ] which was Tier V. Even then, the flesh would only be a mass of muscle tissue on bones with no organs. Other spells like Tier VII [ _False Organs_ ] and Tier III [ _Command Undead_ ] would have to be used to make any sort of use out of the abomination created. Better to just use skeletons, zombies, or both, not try to make a skeleton into a zombie.

It was easier to make a zombie into a skeletons simply by casting the Tier IV necromancy spell [ _Accelerate Decay_ ] which would cause any organs and muscle tissue to rapidly deteriorate and dissolve until only the bones remained.

They both remembered the day when one of Draconis's friends of the Knights of the Round Table had asked him why he knew so much about the undead.

" _ **The**_ **[** Undead **] _type has hundreds of different advantages and disadvantages Tristan. They can be an absolute wave of destruction that cannot be stopped by normal means. To fight the undead, you must be ready for as many variations as possible. Arrows work on zombies, but when there is no flesh? Piercing weapons lose effectiveness . . . the same goes for slashing typed damage. What if the caster makes use of exploding zombies whose bones reform into something more hideous? What then? To better fight undead, you must be intimately aware of how necromancy works. Just smashing it with holy magic only does so much."_**

Their lord was truly interesting. He allowed them to live peacefully with him and those in The Lair. He was good friends with Ser Mordred, who was essentially his antithesis. A Fell Knight. The two men were supposed to be like oil and water. Yet got along quite well. While Draconis made use of Holy Element skills and powers. Mordred called upon the fiendish and darkened realms. It really was fascinating for them.

Mentally urging her younger sister to hurry up and move on, they continued to descend into the tunnel network until they reached a darkened hallway devoid of guards. Kurome could feel it even more so than Akame. As she was a necromancer, she could detect undead and gauge their levels at a distance. Despite the darkened chambers, they could both make out the hulking, two meter tall figure in the distance. Kurome frowned slightly.

A Death Knight? Chained and bound?

The siblings looked at each other with a bit of confusion. Such a weak undead . . . though Akame realized that for the denizens of this continent, the majority of those unfortunate enough to fight one of these would almost certainly die horribly. How then did they manage to contain this one?

Not that it mattered as they observed it. The two assassins made mental notes about the situation before fading into shadows once more as a pair of magic casters accompanied by several knights rounded the corner of the hall.

"Damn, I hate having to check on this thing." The lead magic caster muttered as they entered the chamber. The Death Knight rattled against its constraints and growled, but could do little against the bindings. Akame and Kurome had moved away from the torches the group carried and sought deeper shadows in order to keep their presence hidden.

" _Sister, should I draw it into_ [Yatsufusa] _? I know it's a weak undead, but should they really be keeping this thing down here?"_

Akame grunted negatively at her sister's question.

" _No Kurome. Lord Draconis doesn't need an incident at this time. We were told to investigate,_ not _cause a ruckus."_

Kurome pouted a bit, but repressed the urge to absorb the Death Knight into her collection of undead. [Yatsufusa] was a katana of the undead and could bind lesser undead all the way to High Tier Undead so long as they were less than her level. Being level 95, there was a limit to the usefulness of her summoning against stronger opponents, but in this New World, if she even unleashed the Mid Tier undead against a nation, it would be utter catastrophe.

The two Archfiend siblings observed the mages and knights below as they took some notes after casting a few weak analyzing spells of lesser divination.

"I don't either but Master Paradyne won't be able to finally control this thing without further research. He's counting on us as his pupils!"

Akame and Kurome exchanged looks of interest at that bit of information. Both of them had the same thought.

 _Well now . . . Paradyne? Is that the caster that Lady Lucia told Lord Draconis about? Hmmm . . . we've gathered enough information here. Time to leave._

Both sisters left the area through the shadowy cracks in the underground labyrinth.

* * *

 **Throne Room**

* * *

Fluder Paradyne was wracking his brain trying to figure out just how this man and woman were defying his strongest passive detection abilities, much less how they looked like voids in the throne room in terms of magical presence.

Surely, the scarlet haired man did not just beat Go Gin through raw strength of arms alone. He had heard through the reports that the man had shrugged off a fatal blow and that his blood had caught fire. Blue flames at that! Magic was the only way to explain it. So why could he not see anything? Were his wards truly that potent? The woman's too, were giving him fits.

The only things they had managed to get out of him so far were that he was of Avalon and the fact that he and his forces had been separated from their homeland via an unknown magical method. The tales was outlandish, but Fluder could not detect any deception in his words. There was a high possibility that there were omissions, but that was to be expected if you wanted to keep some cards close to the chest in political machinations.

When he was asked by the Emperor how he became so strong that he could fight Go Gin, he had responded oddly. Years of training and wars unlike any other.

"What do you mean wars? We would have heard of something akin to a war upon or near our neighbors."

Draconis had shaken his head sadly. A distant and seemingly empty look hovered over him like a darkened cowl. Baziwood and the other Imperial Knights had tensed or felt unease. It was as if they were looking at something ancient, like Fluder Paradyne himself, but in a martial form. An aura of a battle hardened veteran flowed from this man before easing and containing itself, as if he knew he was exuding it.

"Be glad Emperor Jircniv, that such wars never have touched your lands."

Something at the back of the young emperor's mind told him to merely agree and let this topic die. He nodded solemnly before moving onward.

"Martial Lord, you mentioned that your forces are occupied with assisting the Dragon Kingdom, but not how."

The man nodded once before beginning to speak. "Training those who wish to protect their homeland is but one of the ways we are providing assistance. We are also repairing damages to towns and villages, providing emergency foods and water and protecting who we can from further attacks."

"So you have been providing logistical support? I fail to see how that helps their kingdom survive much less overcome the beastmen."

Man people nodded in agreement. It seemed a fool's endeavor. To many normal human settlements and minds, it very much was a lost cause.

"To a degree, we are. More than that however is our martial and magical assistance. Yet for all the alacrity of the men and women I lead, we have not the numbers to be everywhere at once."

Jircniv made particular note of this information. Nodding amiably in agreement, he kept his immediate thoughts to himself.

 _So he leads others? The question is how many. It takes no small amount of people to repair destroyed towns and damaged structures. Training and fighting as well as providing foodstuffs is particularly draining. How many does he command? Such an endeavor cannot be done without significant manpower._

"I see. Martial Lord. I would like to know for what reason are you rendering assistance to the Dragon Kingdom. You have spent time here in our glorious capital. Surely you can see the benefits of residing here instead of the desperate kingdom?"

"Why would anyone not render aide? They face utter decimation at the hands of a savage culture which could have taken up some other policy than national banditry and barbarism. One would think that in the interest of mutual long term survival, one would send more assistance. Especially since your people enjoy a luxurious time by comparison."

Jircniv leaned back in his throne to relax. He could tell this would be a point of contest.

"Would it be that I could Martial Lord, but we are at war with our western neighbor and as such, we cannot afford to stretch our forces too thin."

A predatory smirk crossed both of his guests' lips and Jircniv tensed as he felt it. A wave of aggression that made his instincts scream that he had just spoken the wrong words. His Medallion of Mental Protection did nothing to stave his mind from feeling like this man could force him to cooperate if he really wished to do so.

Baziwood made to step forward, but the one look from the lavender haired woman forced him to freeze on the spot.

 _Her eyes! They're mismatched!_ He felt a chill run up his spine as she kept eye contact with him until he broke it first. He vaguely realized that he had begun to sweat. Nimble and Enec received much of the same and both men grit their teeth. They could tell by her body language, if they were to make a wrong move here, she'd not hesitate to slaughter them. Beasts of war in a civilized skin.

 _When she was answering our questions a few days ago about that man she is with, she was polite, but it was forced. Was she suppressing this insanely oppressive force before now? Was it because of the Scarlet Swordsman?_

Leinas wondered this to herself as she fought the urge to make any rash movements. While that man, Draconis? Was keeping his eyes squarely on their Emperor, his companion was eyeballing the four of them. Neither one of them seemed to even worry about Fluder Paradyne . . . a man with so much power that the four of them were nothing by compare! Did they know something that they did not?

"War with your neighbor? Re-Estize? The _annual_ culling of their populace during the period of time just before the harvests? The 'war' that sees your better trained and dedicated forces fight farmers and boys just barely of age? That is not a 'war' Emperor Jircniv. That is cold, cunning, cruel, and methodical slaughtering of a nation."

The people present froze at the man's cold tone. So devoid of emotion was his voice that it sounded like like a ruler who had become jaded from life's trials. The slowly narrowing prismatic eyes as he held his intertwined hands in his lap carried the aura of a master talking to a slow pupil.

"I have been informed of the past few years of conflict you have waged against your neighbors Emperor, so I am not as ignorant of your empire's standing than you may believe me to be. You are not fighting a war. Not by my standards."

Jircniv clenched his teeth but made no refuting claim. The assured confidence in which this scarlet haired swordsman spoke carried with it a weight that only reinforced his words. Was it the clothes he wore that bespoke a standing that rivaled his Imperial Knights? The title in which he introduced himself also was highly unusual and hinted at a lofty origin.

"Very well Martial Lord. Tell me then, what of your title? A Knight Most Heavenly? We have spoken for a bit on nations, but what of you specifically?"

The man lifted a brow in question. "What would you like to know? Bear in mind that I cannot answer all your inquiries."

Some sparks flew between the two men as they seemed to challenge each other with their eye contact alone. Jircniv realized that this man knew the political game far better than he let on. Even though he was the guest in a foreign land at the moment, it felt as if he was the one with the advantage of being in his homeland. Something about him reminded him of Gazef Stronoff.

 _That calm assured nature. The demeanor of a man who knows his place and abides by it without compromising his own beliefs . . . What an infuriating man! How can men like this exist and not be of the Empire? Why do these lesser nations that are either failing or corrupt beyond redemption be blessed with individuals like them?!_

"Tell me Martial Lord. Who taught you how to fight? Taught you the intricacies of such high societal movements? Surely you had a mentor."

Draconis lifted a brow in slight confusion before a looked of realization dawned upon his features. Oddly enough the woman beside him covered her mouth with a hand before giggling a bit. A self depreciating smirk came over his features and it looked so unlike anything they had seen of this man so far that it took them off guard. Did he appear to be . . . sheepish?

"Though I did have mentors and instructors, they are long gone. Of those that taught me the intricacies of the sword and shield, only one of them remains with me in this life. Even so, he also serves my Queen. The man who taught me all I learned to survive the brutalities of the battlefield is no longer with my comrades of old. So keen was his blade and superlative his reflexes that he was capable of feats of prowess that defy description. I would be eternally hard pressed to win against him. Verily . . . I never won a match against him, no matter how close I came to matching him, he always had something new that he would unveil that would see my defeat."

Draconis recalled every match he had against Touch Me . . . all three hundred and sixty-seven of them. The man was a true World Champion.

Touch Me had been able to pull of a rough, but definitive victory against every Floor Guardian of Nazarick when he fought them all simultaneously! Draconis had not believed it at first, but the battle recordings had proven it. Touch Me was a monster among monsters. Super Tier Player did not even begin to describe it. Never mind Touch Me's [ _World Break_ ] skill . . . that thing was so overwhelming it defied logic.

The very thought of someone who could defeat the Scarlet Swordsman after what he had displayed during his match against Go Gin made the Imperial Knights blanch white. That he freely admitted to losing to others and that there were those stronger than him seemed impossible.

"As for the societal intricacies . . . formal functions were a bit of the normal happening at times with our forces. As such, understanding the details of such events was important. Instructors taught me much, despite their rather dry and long winded methods. I found the most effective . . . though not the most subtle of ways to take them to heart was by repeatedly attending even if I did not wish to do so. The embarrassment of past mistakes and breaches in etiquette tend to be a _very_ effective teacher."

He remembered the first few formal functions he had attended back then. The "societal elite" were scathing in their judgments of anyone who breached etiquette. Especially if you should have known better. Such embarrassment was swiftly learned from and corrected. At least if you did not want to be the butt of all the rude jokes of society at the end of the day.

On more than one occasion he had made a fool of himself during dances when he still could walk back then. Losing the ability to walk due to the war had given him an excuse not to . . . but his wife loved dancing and so he felt extraordinarily guilty when she wished to, but could not due to his crippled nature.

Needless to say, when he could experience walking, much less _dancing_ in YGGDRASIL . . . he had seized the opportunity and done so for Artorias, who loved finally being able to enjoy dancing with him. It was one of the reasons they had both enjoyed their time with it so much.

To the rest of those in the meeting chamber, the thought of bumbling through societal functions to learn them was outrageous!

For Leinas Rockbruise, this was a bit of a positive step in her assumptions about the man.

 _Is all of this poise and confidence due to hard work? Dedication to this level of mannerisms? If he was not a prodigy and truly did put forth hard work to attain what he is at now, then how long has he been at it? He does not appear that old . . ._

It seemed to them that he was telling the truth. At least Fluder could not see any apparent attempts at deception. Specific details were not expounded upon, but that was a given due to the circumstances and situation. No true professional gave away all their secrets, nor was anyone truly so transparent that it would lay open for all the world to witness. That was just foolishness of the highest order.

Still, this just made Jircniv more curious. The information was tantalizing, but the way Draconis spoke and gave just enough detail to catch his attention, but not enough to give away critical portions reminded him of some of his old lessons. It seemed like his mentor had at the very least gotten through that hard to learn lesson of letting slip just enough and remaining tight lipped while still answering a question.

Despite that, this was still Arwintar, his home, his capital! To not be able to attain the information he wanted within his own home was aggravating in a way he had not anticipated.

"Martial Lord, I can see that you are more than a simple swordsman. You have obviously gone through social etiquette and political gatherings enough to know how to carry yourself, but your words are vague."

Draconis furrowed his brow as he tilted his head to the left a bit.

"I was under the impression Emperor Jircniv, that revealing all of ones cards during any exchange is best left as a last resort. No person ever tilted their hand at the beginning unless they have nothing left to lose, or are utterly naive. However, since you insist."

Draconis stood from the chair and bowed with a hand over his heart.

"I am here to request aide in repelling the Beastmen from the Dragon Kingdom. As I have spoken before, I do not have the forces to deploy and protect all of the kingdom's villages and towns while driving a counter offensive. Left without true aide, the kingdom will fall."

"What of it?" The Emperor's condescending tone made Draconis pause and frown deeper. Though he was looking at the floor and his left hand was behind his back and his right was over his chest, he remained in place. "Queen Draudillon does nothing and her people do even less. The mountains of the Wyvern Riders will keep them at bay as a natural defense. Even the weakest of wyverns are capable of rending stupid beastmen to shredded chunks of flesh. The Slane Theocracy is to the west and the beastmen will not overcome them in their wildest of dreams."

Draconis restrained his annoyance at this blasé, nonchalant attitude.

"Even should that truly be the case for the Wyvern Riders and Slane Theocracy. The Theocracy is still fighting their war against the elves. Also, the wyverns cannot account for every pathway through the mountain ranges. Even should it not be within the next year or two, eventually, they will spread beyond the Dragon Kingdom's lands should they fall."

"And what of it Martial Lord? They are not of the Empire. Why should we bleed and die for them? For that fossil?" Jircniv frowned. He had received the reports from merchants about those fleeing the Dragon Kingdom only to be turned away by the Slane Theocracy at the western borders and the Wyvern territories in the north of the kingdom's borders.

Draconis gave Jircniv a curious expression.

"Fossil? You speak of Queen Draudillon?"

The open scorn of the Emperor revealed itself at last like an opening floodgate. She was number two on his list of worst women in the world.

"Indeed I do Martial Lord. Honestly I do not see why you even bother helping such a hag. She lies to her people, ruling in the form a child when she is not. For one hailed as possessing dragon's blood in her veins she does nothing as her people are attacked. Her people do little to protect her. I cannot tell you of how many we have turned from the southern borders. They flee like roaches from a feline. Such a cancerous kingdom need not plague this land."

From her seat, Lucia scowled openly. Obviously, his reports were biased and viewed with ignorant human eyes and human perspective. She could understand to an extent, if he merely left it at the fact that she had indeed been using the facade of a child when she was clearly not. To assume that she had not tried to do things to protect her people was another.

Emperor Jircniv leaned back in his chair as he said he continued to speak.

"She has sent missives to us requesting aide, but why should I send the Empire's finest to save those not of their nationality? The compensation does not match the price nor the risk."

Draconis rose from his bow with an icy, stern expression. His eyes had changed from prismatic swirls to frosted azure. The shift was like a cold winter wind and the Imperial Knights and those around them tensed. Yet as suddenly as it had appeared, it faded and his eyes returned to their multi-hued swathes and his expression turned saddened and disappointed. He glanced to the woman sitting behind him over his shoulder.

"I see. That is unfortunate Emperor Jircniv. I ask pardons to excuse myself for a moment. I have received word that I am needed for a missive."

As the words left his lips, the guards at the doors entered and shut them. The man trembled a bit, but spoke with enough strength to be clearly heard.

"A subordinate of the Martial Lord carries a message of import."

Those present muttered and whispered feverishly among themselves. The man had the gall to have a messenger interrupt a meeting between him and the Emperor? Jircniv shrugged his shoulders. He had a suspicion that it had to do with his assistance of the Dragon Kingdom. Not like the man had been subtle or secretive of it.

"I will allow it. I do have other questions for you Martial Lord. Do make it swift."

Draconis nodded in acceptance. As he began to go to the doors, Jircniv spoke again.

"Your friend will remain here. I have questions for her as well. Leinas, accompany him."

Both women looked to the man. Lucia with suspicion and Leinas with confusion. Both still nodded, but each of them had very different thoughts about this.

Lucia was not about to reveal anything about Draconis . . . his race, classes, powers, or magic. Nor was she about to spill her guts to this ambitious upstart.

Leinas wondered why the Earth Guards could not do the job. They were already in the halls leading to the throne room.

As the two left the room, Jircniv settle his sights on Lucia. The woman was far more lax than her companion. It was a startling difference. Where Draconis had been proper and formal, this woman was relaxed and more open with her emotions, currently of which was annoyance and a lack of concern.

"I would ask of you, your name."

"You've no right and have not earned it young Emperor." The hard edge in her voice took all present off their footing. A murderous aura seemed to oppress them all. "I am not as kind and gracious as my pupil is."

The temperature in the room began to rise . . .

* * *

 **Hallway of the Castle**

* * *

Draconis and Leinas stepped out of the room and into the halls. As the doors shut with heavy, locking certainty, Leinas clicked her tongue at the beauty that stood before them. She was adorned in white and black with an odd billed hat. Ice teal hair trailed down her back to her mid calves. She was utterly stunning. Yet when she looked at the woman in the eyes, she felt like she was being sized up and found wanting. The gaze that lanced through her seemed to take stock of her and immediately disregard her all in one moment.

 _Who is she? How is this man surrounded by such women?_

"My Lord." The woman dropped to a knee and the act made Leinas pause. "I come with news from the Dragon Kingdom by request of Commander Samael."

"I see. Be swift, you are interrupting the meeting with the Emperor." The woman nodded and answered. Her words made Leinas rethink the position and circumstances of the Dragon Kingdom and the Emperor's view on their southern neighbors.

"My Lord. Our forces deployed to assist the remaining forces that Queen Draudillon has on the eastern front. We have had sightings of two individuals who defy the expectations. They are powerful . . . immensely so."

Draconis was about to ask what she meant by that when a distinctive feeling tugged at his mind.

"Hold one. Is this Cocytus? This is a surprise. Give me a moment."

The teal haired woman seemed to become a bit elated at the name. Leinas noted as Draconis made a motion with his hand that resembled a clock hand stopping in its circular path, the woman sighed and nodded.

There was a sudden flash of freezing cold that chilled her to the bone. Just as it washed over her, it faded and the woman standing before Draconis was no longer there. Instead there was a small layer of ice and snow upon the floor that began to melt. The scarlet haired swordsman sighed heavily before turning back toward her.

 _What the hells just happened? Where did that woman go?_

"Leinas Rockbruise was it?" at being addressed, she nodded. "I apologize for that flash of cold, but my subordinate had a report of private nature. Do you feel any ill effects of her ability?"

She performed a quick mental check of her faculties and noted nothing truly different. Even her damned curse was still there. She glanced around and found a subtle veneer of ice upon the edges of window sills and the flowers were frosted. The four guards on either side of the doors were suddenly shivering slightly. She took some small comfort that whatever it was that had chilled her did not just affect her.

"No, just suddenly cold."

"Good. I was concerned that her power would have done more than it originally was meant to. Hmm . . . another thing to ponder over for a while. Leinas Rockbruise, I would ask you another question and please be honest."

He spoke softly as he lifted a hand to her face, she flinched and stepped away, instinctively swatting it away with her own. She glared openly at him, but his eyes told her everything. He had managed to see it, the cursed half of her face. An all too familiar trickle of pus ran down it. Gritting her teeth she muttered a curse at him. The knight of Avalon did not move from his spot or reach to grab at her, nor did he flinch or shy away from her like others had who witnessed her ugly curse.

"I can sense that curse upon you. Just what manner of fiend did you fell to receive such an infliction? For it leave such a mark upon you speaks well of your abilities. It scorned you enough to see its death mark inflicted on you."

There was a certain measure of . . . . she could not quite place it. Was it respect? Insight? Familiarity? He seemed to know of the circumstances of her infliction.

"What would you know? Why would that matter to you? You are a wandering blade, perhaps more, but you are sworn to a ruler are you not?"

A firm nod answered her inquiry despite her spiteful tone.

"I am, and during my time within her nation's borders I studied the arts of war and the ways of healers and the clergy. My comrades in arms studied demons and angels alike and found many vicious curses and the cures to them. However, to see such a curse upon you intrigues me. I have not seen the [ _Weeping Malefactor_ ] [ _Death Grudge_ ] in some time."

Leinas's green eyes went wide as he naming of her affliction. Never had anyone identified it in all the years she had been inflicted with the ailment. What kind of knight was this? Demons and angels as a scholarly pursuit? Was this queendom he swore fealty to like that of the Slane Theocracy?

"You know my affliction?!" Leinas tried her best to keep her voice steady, but a hint of something she had not felt in some time crept into her tone.

Hope.

* * *

 **Okay, so it's almost ALMOST the day that will mark the 1 Year Anniversary of The Exiled! Wow . . . has it really been a whole year already? Yeesh, felt like only a month or two since I started this fic! Thank you to all those reading this!**

 **Part Two of the Draconis/Jircniv Baharuth Empire section will be out within the near future.**

* * *

 **Reader Reviews**

* * *

 **rmarcano321:** Speaking honestly, it is actually not Draconis. As I have been writing, I find putting little twists and quirks on Artorias is fun. Yet its probably actually Draudillon in this case as my favorite. You keep asking the same questions over and over. Don't worry about it and just enjoy the ride.

 **Awayuki:** Hmm hmmm . . . Odin indeed . . .

 **Omegadramon2:** Meeting Rimiru? I think Ainz and Draconis both would like the guy. More Draconis due to his more good guy oriented nature. Though Ainz would go bonkers trying to figure him out. Draconis would honestly get a good laugh out of the irony of Slime OP. Then again, Bukubukuchagama and a few others were also Slimes, so yeah, they can be OP rather than Dragon Quest noob mobs. Lol.

 **MadDan90:** Well, here ya go! Thus it begins . . .

 **Lew89:** Humbled . . . enlightened? Little bit of both perhaps? Thank you for dropping in again Lew89!

 **17konbro:** I played the first Destiny, but stopped after the second raid. Never got into Destiny 2 due to all the controversy over the way they executed the launch and other bits and pieces. The concept of the Sentient Items was not far off of other older RPG themes and more along the lines of the Disgaea Item Worlds kinda trick. Heh heh heh . . . DOOD!

 **PervySageChuck:** Lucia does NOT approve of that imagery. Neither does Artorias for that matter . . . bad Chuck!

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** Thank you for reading and enjoying the fic! I hope to do that part the appropriate justice when the time arrives!

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** No, they are not the Fates of Greek and Roman mythos, and yes, Valhalla is Norse. You will see! I try to place interactions with New Worlders and others I have not put upon the stage in a while here and there.

 **ImmortalGlare:** Ah, but now in the New World they actually are real gods. Or at least so freaking overwhelmingly powerful that even level 100s like Draconis and his friends cannot win one-on-one and will still struggle with a group against one.

 **Lady Eclair:** I hope you enjoy the Light Novels, but do you mean finishing ALL of them? You do realize that Kugane-san has gone on hiatus? Who knows when we'll get the next volume. Much less if it redeems itself or continues to spiral.

 **TheStoryWever:** I hope I can do your hopes justice, though I may surprise you.

 **Don FenrikIvanov:** Yet another example of those that just don't read the fic through. Draconis is not top 5 in the players. No where close. Only Touch Me is that high.

He IS OP. The game of YGGDRASIL does not allow a jack-of-all trades built to rule the game. In truth it sucks HARD. Yet his dragon race allows him to both go Martial Classes and yet STILL have Magic as if a Pure Caster build up to and including SUPER TIER spells. In a game like YGGDRASIL, that alone is bonkers broken. He does not flaunt his power, he KNOWS he is powerful, he CHOOSES not to flaunt it as Ainz does. He tries . . . key word . . . TRIES to be discreet and yet, even his weak powers are OP in this New World.

A person can right NPCs however the hell they want to. He did make them that way, is it foolish? Perhaps. Dangerous? More than likely. He wrote stories on them, it became them. He wrote in his relationships with them. Those relationships became them.

Even in the canon, the NPCs of Nazarick do retain some memories of the time spent during the game. Granted they are distorted to a degree, but the biggest example of this is the conversation between Sebas, Solution, and Shalltear in the carriage.

Shalltear explicitly states that she heard Bukubukuchagama talking about her role as a voice actress. Despite how they do not understand the true nature of her profession . . . she recalls that conversation, not typing or programming, a voice chat conversation with a fellow player.

Ummm . . . . if that doesn't blow your issues with my chapter 3 heart to heart with Draconis and his NPCs, then I don't know what will.

Because that's how he wrote them and he even kind of 4th Wall breaks and explains why he made them that way. Because he wrote them to be understanding and thoughtful, they considered his words and due to the reasons he gave them their histories, they realized his character and thus gave him a chance.

If you read up to this point, okay then. If not, well . . . hope you find something more to your liking.

Yeesh. NEXT!

 **PoseidonisPlayz:** My thanks dear reader. Honor can take different forms and not all of it is necessarily morally sound, but it is there.

 **Generation Zero:** XD I am glad that I inadvertantly granted a wish of yours with the advent of the Gods and Mythologies.

The way I figured it, it's called YGGDRASIL. The Server Worlds were the Worlds of Norse Mythology with Asgard, Midgard, Hel, and other locales. I mean, why would there NOT be divinities?! Thanks for stopping by!

 **Touchty:** Go relearn the definition of Over Powered and Game Breaking.

 **Alfonse08:** Yeah, I guess they do default to sighing and nodding their heads. Lol.

I don't honestly know just how much growth they could do. They would have to hit the realm of heroes (Level 30 and higher) or Adamantite to fight Beastmen. Considering how hard it is to do so naturally in the New World, I don't know how much help Draconis's forces training them would truly be. They would definitely have VERY advanced tactics and strategies for their time period so to speak. That alone can change the power balance, but the sheer number of beastmen and the direct differences in strengths is still jarring.

Considering that the PoPs are all Level 30, or Heroes for the New World, it's like having an army of Adamantites. Something utterly unheard of in the New World. I am sure some of the New World inhabitants COULD hit that benchmark and maybe push beyond with the help of YGGDRASIL items and equipment, but as was mentioned in this chapter, TIME is the real enemy here. It always is in wars.

 **FanGuy59:** Oooh, good guess. Yet no. It is not Urd, Belldandy, or Skuld. The sisters of Ah! Megami-sama won't be making any cameos here. Besides, Bell has Keiichi. She shouldn't be on the battlefields. It was sad, but fulfilling to see that manga series finally reach completion.

Looks at all 48 Volumes on the shelf. I truly loved that series and always will. It was well worth the wait.

* * *

 **All of that being said everyone . . . Thank You for reading this chapter!**

 **I have a poll up on my profile. Please give it a look and vote!**

* * *

 **Until next time!**


	32. Chapter 30: A Battle of WordsIdeals Pt2

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimer**

It's December and time for the Holidays. Hopefully I will have more than just the previous chapter and this one by year's end! Here's to hoping.

Overlord is owned by Kugane Maruyama and licensed by YenPress.

* * *

 **Chapter 30: Battle of Words and Ideals Part 2**

* * *

Leinas leveled a keen eye on the knight of Avalon standing before her. For all of her looking for the typical tells of a man who did not mean what he said, there were none of the usual signs. No telltale smirk. No leering eyes or twitching fingers. There was not even a tapping of a foot. Just a stoic, calm pillar of understanding.

Understanding of the curse that plagued her face since that day . . .

* * *

 **Some Years Ago . . .**

* * *

It was during summer . . .

Those hot, humid months of the year that normally garnered the mid-term season of growth for the harvests of the fields and were more full of carefree days. During that time, a younger Leinas Rockbruise spent her time training with swords than waltzing with noblemen. The Rockbruise family was not terribly high on the chain of nobility, but it was still of a noble house.

She had garnered a bit of a reputation as a tomboy, but the level of ease with which she moved and trained seemed to captivate enough people who met her. Because of this, she had been deemed a Sword Maiden. A beautiful woman with stunning green eyes and a fierce will. Paired with her skill with a blade, her reputation preceded her across her family's domain. Those who fell under her family's jurisdiction adored their Sword Maiden.

Time and again she would end up receiving some form of request for her services. As such, she garnered a fair amount of notoriety as a monster exterminator around their region of the Empire.

Over time, she had even garnered a young man who she enjoyed the company of. The two of them were happy.

Then that one day, that . . . that _fiend_ had appeared. It had been rushing to and fro, slaughtering innocents in the night. The trail of blood that it had left was horrid. Leinas still remembered that night.

She had arrived at the village she had promised to defend after several sightings of the fiend had been reported via reliable sources. The soldiers that had traveled with her had died first. They died in the defense of the villagers. When she cornered the fiend, it had a deceptively human like appearance.

Yet the long, spindled claws that had to have been at least a full twelve inches long reeked of blood and gore. The eyes, dark amber flecked with stained crimson, held a sinister and twisted mix of both innocence and insanity. Other than those features, the monstrosity could not have been older than that of a young boy less than twelve.

Knowing that she was facing a demonic entity, she had requested prayers and blessings from the church. They had been expensive, but worth it. The vials of holy water than she had bought had proven immensely effective. It had begged for its life. She had never felt or seen such sacrilege in the face of what it had done, the atrocities the demon had inflicted simply for the entertainment of it. It had mocked her soldiers as it slaughtered them. Laughed maniacally at their suffering.

She had felt no remorse for ending its existence. The fight between them had gone on for far longer than she had realized and as the sun rose above the horizon, she drove her sword through its heart. It had screamed curses at her in the voice of an innocent boy, but her heart was not deterred and she had twisted the blade.

The death throws of the demon had been less than she had braced for. It was in that final moment of victory that she had dropped her guard . . .

A clawed hand lashed out and caught her right cheek with a shallow cut before grabbing her head on the right and dragging its broken body up to her face. The eyes! Crazed and brimming with hatred had glared at her to her soul.

She shuddered at the memory.

" _ **Yo**_ **U! S** ** _h_ AlL Suf _FeR F_ oR S _la_ Y _In_ g ME! ThE _Q_ uAlitY TH _At drE_ w Pe _O_ pLE tO TheE ShAL _L No_ W bE You _R C_ uRse! AAAaaahhahahahahah!"**

A piercing pain unlike anything she had ever experienced to that point in her life dropped her to her knees as the demon cackled in scorn. The sensation of something invading the cut on her face had been unmistakable! The right half of her face burned and seared! She had wailed in agony as she passed out.

When she had awoken, she had not been greeted with thanks, but with fear and repulsed disgust. At first she had been bewildered and confused. She knew she had been injured across her face, but she wasn't dead. Yet no one would approach her. Children fled in terror and adults locked their doors and shut their windows tight. She had slain the fiend plaguing them! Why did they act in such a fashion?

It was not until she managed to see her face in the reflection of a water trough that she recoiled at the sight of herself.

Across her right face was a festering gash that seemed to rot slightly at the origin of the cut like that of a necrotic spider's bite. The flesh would not fall away though, and it seeped heavily with pus. The effect traveled all the way to her right eye and ash white veins traced the cracks in her face. It was a sight to make the faint of stomach vomit. Which she did as she realized what the fiend had screamed at her.

Leinas had gone into deep denial. Surely her looks were not the only thing that garnered the attention of others. Surely her family loved her more for her accomplishments rather than her looks alone?

Yet upon the return to their home, she had been shunned. Her father was horrified and her mother was appalled. Her sister and brother turned against her, speaking ill begotten words of scorn and resentment. Her sister had even rejoiced at her affliction, stating that she had always hated her for her looks and her epithet of a Sword Maiden. Somehow beautiful but not a proper woman and yet she had garnered the favor of those around her with her beautiful looks and her martial prowess. A rarity. A gem.

"Great going sister! Now I can be the one they flock to instead of you! Stupid sister . . . getting attention even though you run around in that nasty armor and sweaty swordplay. Now with you so hideous I can take the limelight! Ohohohohoh!"

All Leinas had ever really wanted was to effectively show her prowess. She knew that she was pretty, but that had not been her soul motivation. Yet for all of her family's claims of adoration, they did not love her as she had believed. Her cursed face alone was enough to have them cut all ties with her.

Of all of that though, the nail in the coffin had been the turned back and horrified expression of her love. He cursed her as an abomination. Touted that it was punishment from the Six Great Gods for stepping outside the boundaries set for women by taking up the sword. The only man she had come to accept as her other half, ousted her from his side without hesitation.

It was these betrayals that fueled her bleak, selfish perspective. She swore revenge on all that had turned their backs upon her. Her self inflicted madness at her condition drove her to becoming even more potent as a weapon. When she had garnered the attention of Emperor Jircniv, she had laid her terms before him, expecting him to reject her outright. Yet he had agreed to her terms of holding her own life more dear than his and allowing her the revenge she craved.

Her once blasé attitude about her looks became an obsession whenever men leered at other women or talked about their appearances. It was all a harsh and cruel reminder to her of the only thing her family and her loved one had ever wanted her for. Her appearances.

Over the time she had spent as an Imperial Knight however, she was restricted in the execution of her revenge due to her duties to the Emperor. How very ironic.

But if anything, she was patient . . .

Oh yes . . . She would have her revenge. It was a part of her diary after all . . .

* * *

 **Present Day . . .**

* * *

Leinas clenched a fist so hard that her knuckles popped at the memories.

Before her, Draconis remained quietly looking at her as a conflicted expression crossed her features. Despite the hint of hope that laced her question to him, she was also at a crossroads. Instead of saying anything, he merely waited for her to initiate the next move.

"How?"

He narrowed his gaze at her question. She returned the favor, suspicious despite her fear of daring to rekindle a spark she thought long gone within her. That inkling of hope, a little light so delicate, yet so strong that the ember was stoked and the fire was relighting itself amidst her dark drifting heart.

"How do you know what my affliction is? Not even Fluder Paradyne or anyone else in the Magic Academy could identify this damned thing." her voice was practically a growl directed at him. "Explain yourself."

"In the interest of keeping this short so not to keep the Emperor waiting, I know it because I've seen it before. Rather often to those that fight and emerge victorious over that kind of demon. Those that drop their guards when killing a [ _Youth Defiler_ ] normally suffer a [ _Death Grudge_ ]. A kind of last effort blow in its death throws. There are two kinds of [ _Death Grudge_ ], one of them kills their killer in mutual death. It is rarer to encounter. The more common of the two is [ _Weeping Malefactor_ ]. As for how I know? I told you. I have comrades that have made it a close study. The world is far more than a mere Empire."

She frowned at his words even as she bit the inside of her lip in frustration.

 _Damnation. He even knows the name of kind of demon I killed. I only recently learned of it earlier in the harvest season last year._

She heard him muttering under his breath.

"She slew it . . . yet was . . . it less than level 40? Less than level 20? Perhaps not all of the normal criteria apply to this realm?"

What was that about? Was he referring to the Adventurer's Guild's difficulty system? He seemed to be genuinely lost in thought, his eyes distant and thoughtful. Before she could question him further, a pair of young women rounded the corner of the hallway and approached them with purposeful, confident strides. The swords at their waists made her alert and the guards behind her tensed. Black haired beauties, but they seemed so young! She then took in the sight of the long coats they wore and saw the symbol of Draconis's Coat of Arms upon their left lapels.

She swallowed. How many women did this man employ?! How were they all so beautiful? Was he a affluent womanizer?

She took a closer look at the two and had to think twice about such a conclusion. They bore katanas . . . the expensive, difficult to master weapons from the far South. They possessed the raven black hair so indigenous to the South nation of Bakamatsu Genpei. Was Avalon close to that powerful nation? Were they allies? She had only heard rumors of such sword masters. Sam-Arh-Eye or whatever they were called, were said to be masters of the foreign blade.

Both of the mystery women strode straight to Draconis and the longer haired one stood on tip toes to whisper up to him behind upheld hand to shield her lips. The man leaned down in her direction without even looked once at her. He closed his eyes with a frown and nodded once before shaking his head negatively and gesturing to them both in a dismissive gesture.

The two katana bearers nodded and bowed before stunning the guards and making Leinas warily back up a step as they walked behind the man and literally disappeared completely. Both of them had walked behind him from opposed directions yet had completely and utterly vanished.

In reality, the moment they sensed that no eyes where on them directly, they had melded into his shadow. Mentally, Draconis cringed and groaned in annoyance.

" _Damn it girls! Don't create awkward tension! You could have just walked back around the corner and vanished in the shadows of a curtain or drape!"_

" _Our apologies my Lord."_ was the not-so-sorry response from both of them.

 _Note to self: deprive them of their favorite foods for a week after this meeting is finally over. When did these two become such mischief makers?!_

Now having to make something up on the fly, he lifted a hand non threateningly.

"It seems that my personal guards have spooked you. Apologies. I will chastise them later for the unease they have caused you."

Leinas did not know how to respond to that. Even a man strong enough to best Go Gin in single combat had bodyguards? Now she was truly concerned about just who this Draconis was. How high up the power ladder was this man in the nation he claimed to be a knight of? What was the title of Knight Most Heavenly?

* * *

 **Meanwhile . . .**

 **Throne Room Interior . . .**

* * *

Lucia pitted the Emperor with displeased eyes. Jircniv frowned at her audacity as did many others. Fluder himself was beginning to sense what this presence portended. He had only felt it once before and that had been during his ill ventured journey to Eryuentiu to acquire a magical item like those received by the Thirteen Heroes more than two hundred years ago.

Something that felt ancient and exceedingly powerful. Like the thirty guards of the city that floated in the air who were in possession of ridiculous magical items. Even he would not be able to overcome those guards of that ancient city left by the Eight Greed Kings. There seemed to be no true reason why the guards of that place allowed some through and ruthlessly chased off or killed others who came in search of those rare, exceedingly powerful treasures.

"I am not the one you wish to speak with nor am I someone who wishes to speak with you. I am here as a favor to an old friend." She glanced over her shoulder at the doors Draconis had left through. "As he is truly not from around here and I am familiar with the lands, I offered to be a sort of guide. The business here is his with you. Not me."

Jircniv smiled thinly. "Yet you are here and as a guide, your actions would reflect upon him would they not? Not only that, but you mentioned his relation to you was that of a pupil? Were you one of his mentors?"

Lucia laughed sharply at the young emperor. At least he kept his wits about him.

"Yes, I was one of his mentors. Yet he has moved beyond being a pupil. He is my equal, something few can say. I will not betray what he is capable of. He, likewise will not betray my own confidences."

Nimble frowned in concern before stepping forward to speak. He glanced to Jircniv, who read his intention and nodded smoothly to give him permission.

"Lady Lucia. Can you not at the very least affirm that his words and claims concerning his allegiance?"

She gave the young Imperial Knight a look and raised her eyebrows with a smirk.

"I suppose that at the very least cannot hurt. Indeed. Avalon and its queen are very real. They are a nation which leans to peace, but do not take that for being pacifists. They have fought many wars and garnered a high reputation many years past."

Jircniv leaned forward at this. Many of those present also paid particularly close attention.

"How so? Are these wars the ones that the Martial Lord speaks of?"

Lucia nodded slowly. "The queendom has fought many conflicts, only two of them were ever ones of aggression. The Wars as we call them were between others of significant power and influence over resources and treasures untold. They were brutal affairs and not for the ill prepared."

A dark look came over her face as she spoke of it. Phantasmagoria fought in a few of them and she remembered the one time they had been partnered up with Avalon and The Lair as allies. Many of the members of their guild had been skeptical about the smaller guild, but when the fighting started, the level of combat and strategy and tactical planning and flexibility coupled with the utterly ruthless targeting of commanders and key figures had stunned her and many others.

There was a level of organization and forethought that only dogs of war would have understood. She had heard that many of the members of Avalon were military veterans from the Arcology War, but few players truly believed that to be true. Yet that battle had been a clear case of actual battle experience against players of a game with a war mechanic. The defenses were effective and took into account elemental weaknesses, racial pros and cons and other factors. They had been a hard wake up call.

Normally, a game's mechanics did not meld well with real world tactics and strategies, but with the overwhelming ability to customize and input data crystals into all aspects of the game, the forces that deployed from Avalon and The Lair were unlike anything else seen. Who had been their data entry person? From the unit makeup and AI to the engineered "killzones" for archers, spellcasters, calvary rushes and other factors, it was absurd. The city was not a labyrinth by any means, but the complexity of the defenses was absurd. They did not defeat opponents by trickery, but brutal, efficient, and ruthless cunning and overwhelming force.

When you fought Avalon, they were not like other guilds with bosses they created to be singular in nature. When you fought Avalon, they made you fight against brigades and companies with multiple max level NPCs and one of their own players at max level all simultaneously.

Nevermind if Draconis arrived to act as reinforcements when he unleashed his full dragon form. It was like facing down a tank with a rifle by yourself when he had troop support. They would target anything with anti-dragon weaponry as a single cohesive whole before fanning out to remove anything else Draconis did not fight himself.

Only five guilds had ever breached their inner most defenses. There, they all had encountered Artorias and Merlin. Sometimes Draconis would wait with them as a final encounter. The Queen of Knights buffs and specials from her classes turned the fights at that point into a one sided slaughter. In the defense of her home, her panoply was supremely powerful. Merlin was a force all his lonesome with his magics he held the record for the number of Super Tier Spells cast in a singular combat. Archmage was a title he rightly held.

"Indeed young emperor. They have fought in ancient battles of massive proportions that were only dwarfed by the Dragonsong War. I will say no more on the matter. Anything more will be with Draconis."

Jircniv frowned in thought. Fluder pondered these revelations as he stroked his beard. Never had he even herd motes about this "Dragonsong War". These people had to be from one of the far continents! New opportunities to learn crossed his mind. Yet if it was not magical, it would only hold so much worth to him. The remaining three Imperial Knights shuddered at the implications of the name of that specific war.

Off to the side, in the crowds, Count Femel ground his teeth.

 _What ludicrous claims these two make! I will have my information network oust out the truth of these matters! The emperor will have to change his opinions of me when I bring information that not even Fluder Paradyne would be able to bring to his attention._

* * *

 **Halls of Arwintar Castle**

* * *

Draconis and Leinas stared at each other for several moments in silence. The man remained stoic and passive, though he did let some compassion and concern crept through. Leinas had never encountered a man who seemed to understand her situation and not call her out on her issues, but rather seemed to understand it. It was irritating and confusing! Infuriating to a point! Where had this man been when everything had gone wrong with her life?

"So you know what afflicts me. It can't be cured!"

He nodded once, which surprised her. Was he agreeing with her?

"With the level of spell needed to cure it, probably not within the Empire. However, there _are_ ways to rid yourself of it. The simplest is simply having the correct healing spell of the appropriate level of power. The other is . . . risky . . . and not a method I am comfortable advising you on. My peer in Avalon would be more suited to that task."

She took an adamant step forward. He knew! This man knew someone who could help her! His frown took her off guard.

"Honestly speaking however, I am hesitant to offer this to you. You are sworn to service with the Empire are you not? Not that I am against assisting one in need, but I have heard from the grapevine that your allegiance to the Emperor is only so you may drive forward your personal goal of revenge. Would so suddenly being alleviated from your burden truly satisfy you? Would your oaths remain should such a boon be bequeathed to you?"

Leinas Rockbruise flinched at his words. There was a steel to them that was meant to test her. It was obvious to her that he cared not for her looks. He was asking and calling her character . . . her core being into question. This man was informed. Well informed at that, not that she had exactly made her conditions for being an Imperial Knight a secret. Yet now that the question was put to her directly and with such clarity . . .

"I . . . I don't know." She found herself spilling her thoughts from her lips. "I have made no effort to conceal my contempt with the family that ousted me purely on my hideous appearance. The once thought friends that I thought took in my company for my desire to help those under my family's protection. My ex-fiance . . . Long have I desired little more than revenge against them. Should this infernal curse of my be lifted, I would gladly pledge my loyalty to them."

Draconis only seemed to scowl deeper at her last few words. Growing confused, she grit her teeth. Had she misspoke? She had answered him surprisingly honest when she thought about what she had just confessed.

"I see. Shunned by family and lover alike. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned." He gave her an understanding nod. "Leinas Rockbruise. We will speak later. For now, let us return to the meeting."

She nodded in agreement as she realized how much time had passed. There had been a phantom expression of understanding. Had he gone through something similar with his own family? Some kind of negative event? He had not preached on a high horse about the wrongs of pursuing revenge like some of the priests of the church had done. Yet he had not condoned it either . . . he had simply shown understanding.

"You are an odd man. Yet you are right. Let us return."

The two returned to the throne room to a rather tense atmosphere. Leinas returned to the Emperor's side and Draconis moved back to his seat. He gave Lucia a questioning look. Obviously something had been discussed and Lucia had not been very amiable about it if the tension in the room was anything to go by.

He took his seat slowly, subtly taking in the emotions on display throughout the chamber. The faces of the merchants and nobles present were all terse and suspicious. The other three Imperial Knights appeared anxious, apprehensive, and like taught wires. Leinas was whispering to them and they were returning her words with ones of their own. It was obvious that she was asking what was going on and they were informing her. At her concerned glance their direction he mentally groaned.

Pitting Lucia with a questioning glare, he opened a [ _Message_ ] with her.

" _What the hells did you do?"_

" _He asked about the validity of Avalon and I told them that your wife and her people had fought in many wars, the Guild Wars. Little else."_

He frowned, even that information could be taken the wrong way. He knew for a fact that if any of these human nations declared war on Avalon, Nazarick, or even his own home, the consequences of battle would be woefully one sided if any of them retaliated. Biting his lip, he braced himself for another line of questioning.

"Martial Lord. I want to know what it is you obtain from helping the Dragon Kingdom. They can only offer you so much in return for assistance."

Draconis shook his head.

"What do I gain? Peace of mind in knowing that I have helped innocent families? A possible ally in a land I know little to nothing of? I do not need their wealth or lands. I do not need their crops or livestock. I do this because it is right and just. Queen Draudillon owes me nothing. I do so because I wish to. Is that not enough?"

Jircniv was dumbfounded, as were many of those present.

"Nothing? Nothing at all?"

Draconis sat back in his seat with a serious expression and assured posture.

"Nothing."

Jircniv looked at him curiously. "She has not offered anything?"

"She is an intelligent woman Emperor. She likely realized at our first meeting that there was little to nothing she could offer me as compensation. I am fully confident that she would highly likely offer me anything if it meant that her people were saved. Let me be clear on this Emperor Jircniv. _I_ will not accept anything she will try to offer me in payment for my services. It would not be right to have her trade one abysmal situation and chains for a different cage. I offer aide of my own free will. I ask nothing in return except the happiness of her people."

"You are a fool." Jircniv voiced softly to himself. "I will not assist the Dragon Kingdom as you do. It is folly."

Draconis nodded in frustration.

"Fair enough Emperor. What would it take to assure and guarantee assistance in any measure to your southern neighbor? So long as it is not assisting your Empire in your annual battle against Re-Estize, nor asking my allegiance to sway from my Queen I will make an effort to strike a deal with you."

Jircniv saw this window of opportunity. Even if it was not direct assistance, surely the man could reveal some kind of peak into his powers or prowess. If it could be replicated it would be a boon to the Empire's forces! He grinned.

"Allow me to converse and take council but a moment."

Draconis nodded in acceptance of Jircniv's proposal and as the Emperor, Fluder, and his Imperial Knights began to whisper among each other, as did many nobles present, he turned his attention to The Lair. More specifically, Chronos.

Jircniv looked to Fluder with serious eyes as he spoke with low tones meant only for those immediately around him.

"So Old Man? What have you found?"

The master of magic shrugged slightly with a huff. The Imperial Knights frowned at the act.

"Precisely nothing young Jircniv. They are both warded by something so powerful I cannot detect any magic on them whatsoever. They are voids of magic and show nothing of magical capacity. More than likely, the woman with him advised him about me and they are probably making use of powerful anti-detection magic or a powerful item."

Fluder's words made sense. The lavender haired Lucia had admitted to essentially being the Scarlet Swordsman's guide here in the Empire. But how did she know so much and they had not heard of her? Jircniv turned to his Imperial Knights.

"What of you four? Leinas, who was his subordinate? How did they get past all the guards before reaching the doors to the throne room?"

Leinas frowned as she answered him.

"I do not know. However, his subordinate is undoubtedly powerful. He admitted to me that many of his compatriots in Avalon are knowledgeable on the subjects of angels and demons and how to fight them. I believe that is where much of his title originates from."

Before anyone could ask, she pressed onward. "She is not there anymore. There was a flash of cold and right before my eyes, she vanished, leaving front upon the windows and floor."

Fluder hummed as he pondered her words. "Yet I detected no magic spells. A Talent perhaps?"

Leinas could only nod in affirmative. That is what she would chalk it up as.

Nimble brought a hand to his chin in thought as well.

"Is your Eminence planning on actually demanding something as compensation to send some of our forces to the south?"

Jircniv was rather tempted. If this man really did not need or desire anything from Draudillon, then this was his opportunity to demand something of him and send assistance. The man never made any specific number of men or women or the supplies or anything else in terms of specific support.

Baziwood spoke up with a frown on his face.

"Emperor, you should get the exact means of support he is looking for. Then we will know for sure how much to demand in return. Besides, we do send support already, however sparse. But lately, the Dragon Kingdom struggles to pay their tribute."

Jircniv smiled at Baziwood. "You are correct Baziwood Peshmel. We will ask that he cover the tribute that they have missed of late and then some and one or two other things. He will balk at the costs and retract his request of aide. Then we will act in generosity to send aide with the promise of a debt to be paid."

Nimble had his doubts about this plan and bit his lip before adding his gold pieces to the discussion.

"Forgive me Emperor. He already stated two restrictions on the cost to acquire aide. I doubt he will budge on those, so having him swear fealty will not occur."

"What if I were to demand something he could give that would indirectly aide us on all fronts? You are all my best of the best. The strongest knights of the Empire. Surely you could learn his swordsmanship and then make use of it. He never said anything regarded something that would indirectly help us wage our war on Re-Estize."

The four knights glanced at each other in surprise. Of course! That was true. Knowing even just the basics of his swordstyle would greatly improve there force of arms. Teaching even just the fundamentals could bolster their military might a great deal. Perhaps even boost them to the point of being equal to the Slane Theocracy. It was promising. They all nodded in agreement with the Emperor. Even Leinas was not stubborn enough to reject this idea out of hand.

Fluder Paradyne added one more bit to the discussion before they parted.

"I wish to ask him two questions and he must answer as a part of the demands."

"What are you getting at Old Man? Are you getting caught up in your abyss of magic again?"

"Just a curiosity young Emperor."

Jircniv shrugged, it could not hurt to add it to the list. He nodded, signaling that the discussion was at an end. As they parted, the noticed the man of the hour so to speak, was waiting for them with expectant eyes.

"Martial Lord. I have decided to consent to sending the Dragon Kingdom aid so long as the following criteria are met in full."

Draconis sat straighter in his seat as he prepared for the demands. Regardless of the words that the Emperor used, these were demands, plan and simple. He nodded to indicate that he was ready to hear the list.

"Very well Emperor Jircniv. I am prepared to hear your list."

"Firstly. The Dragon Kingdom has paid us tribute in the past to assistance. Of late, they have not sent their tribute, such is the reason for our lack of military aide. The Empire wishes to have that payment made, along with the late payments as recompense."

Jircniv paused to gauge his reaction and when he saw no obvious signs of objection, he pressed onward.

"Secondly. Fluder Paradyne would ask of you two questions in which you are obligated to answer. And finally, I wish for you to teach my Knights the swordsmanship you displayed during your bout with the previous Martial Lord Go Gin. Not a demonstration, but actual tutelage. Agree to all of this and we shall honor the agreement."

Draconis leaned toward Lucia and began to whisper. Lucia leaned in to him and whispered back. The two glared at each other a moment before Draconis sighed and shook his head at her and she in turn rolled her eyes and shrugged. He returned his attention to them before speaking.

"What was the amount or method of tribute?"

"A monthly compensation of 10,000 Gold a month. They have not paid for eight months. Eighty thousand for their back pay and the usual tribute for however many months required."

"How many troops will that secure?"

Jircniv spoke in absolute certainty. "One of our Orders."

The collective gathering gasped at the Emperor's words. One whole Order of Knights?! Twenty thousand troops? It was absurd! Yet Jircniv was confident. No single man had that much wealth in nothing but coinage. Wealth was a culmination of lands, livestock, servants and manpower, and the coin you possessed, but no one had all of that in pure coinage.

"Done."

The smirk on Jircniv's face disappeared and was replaced with confusion. Had he just heard correctly?

"Pardon?" His ever so eloquent response made Draconis raise a brow in question.

"Done. I will pay it. When and where shall I have my people bring it to you?"

 _No! . . . Nononononono! This cannot be! That is impossible. No man possesses such wealth in pure coin!_

Jircniv frowned as he answered. "By the end of the week." His words made most merchants and noble alike pale. Such a demand was impossible. No one could appropriate such massive wealth in a single place in such a short period of time! "I will arrive in person with my Knights at the inn where you take your rest. Should you not have the wealth at the mid morning bell in seven days I will not send aid."

"Agreed. Your Court Mage's questions next?"

The abruptness in which the man finalized those terms and moved to the next bullet point stunned everyone present. Could this man really do such a thing?!

Fluder fairly chuckled as he stepped forward. Part of him was mildly amused to see the young emperor taken off guard. It was a rare sight for his quite old eyes.

"Martial Lord. The entire time you and your companion have been within this chamber I have not been able to detect a mote of magic capacity upon either of you. I will speak frankly. Do you know magic?"

The man looked oddly amused at him.

"I do. To quell any other questions, I did not use any I know during the match with Go Gin as was previously promised to the man Osk."

Fluder nodded as he pondered the next question to ask the man. This new knowledge intrigued him greatly. Nearly as much as the Sorcerer Ainz Ooal Gown . . .

 _That's it!_

"Do you know the Sorcerer Ainz Ooal Gown?"

The expressions of both the Scarlet Swordsman and his female companion both changed so drastically to shock and surprise that they were also surprised. Jircniv took particular note of their reactions. This was the first time he had any indication of knocking the two of them off balance.

"I will take that as your answer. How do you know him? What is he to you?"

"Watch yourself Court Magician. You ask dangerous questions now." Lucia's voice held an admonishing and warning air to her tone. The man by her side nodded heavily in agreement.

"Then I ask it in place of him. Who is he and what is he to you both?" Jircniv began to tire of their cryptic words.

Draconis and Lucia frowned and she nodded to him. If Lucia was to tell it, she'd be too honest and straightforward as her guild had clashed against them in the past. Draconis was a bit more amiable toward the guild of grotesques.

"He is a magic caster unlike any other. Do not provoke him if you encounter him and you might be safe. I warn you Jircniv, do not open Pandora's Box."

All present had heard vague allusions to that phrase. Pandora's Box. A mythical item said to have held the world's tragedies and misfortunes, opened by a foolish woman who could not keep her curiosity in check. Even in the New World it's cautionary tale existed. Yet what they did not know was that the actual item was one of YGGDRASIL's World Items.

To all others present, it was a confounding declaration and warning. To them, the purpose of the warning defeated itself. What did he mean? No provoking him _might_ save them?

"What kind of warning is that?" Count Femel muttered to himself under his breath.

Jircniv and his Imperial Knights nodded shallowly at his warning. It was beginning to sound like this Ainz Ooal Gown was of dubious character. In the Empire, few made the warning of Pandora's Box lightly. That even this man knew of the legend and warned of it meant something. But what could it mean for the man hailing as Ainz Ooal Gown? A man like this Scarlet Swordsman to warn against provoking a single magic caster? Fluder Paradyne's curiosity was piqued now. While Jircniv grew more concerned, Fluder only grew more eager to discover what lay behind the mask so to speak.

"With those questions answered, when shall I tutor your soldiers in the basics of my swordsmanship?"

Baziwood stepped forward with the permission of his Sovereign. "I would enjoy a spar in the morning if it pleases you. I must admit, seeing you in action awakens the swordsman in me."

Enec surprised his peers by also stepped forward with an eager grin. "Indeed, I must agree with Peshmel. However, I must ask Scarlet Swordsman, what is the foundation of your style? I've not seen such fluidity much less defensive bladework."

"I learned from several instructors. However I must say that my favorite was the elven tutor from my youth." He chuckled as he remembered the opening tutorials from YGGDRASIL in melee combat for single hand swords. The elvish instructor was eloquent and potent, yet to the point and easy to understand. Lucia nodded in agreement, despite that she had learned spear work and the spear tutorial had been run represented by a human.

"Elven swordsmanship and archery is a thing of elegant effectiveness. A blend of pragmatism and flourish that is neither too flashy, nor so pragmatic that it lacks any form of panache."

It took the Imperial Knights a moment to realize what he was putting forth.

"That was elven swordplay?"

"Impossible . . ."

Draconis looked to them as a parent would teaching a child.

"The parrying and my defensive technique is indeed elvish in foundation. Granted, I have had many long years to add my own flair to it, but the core tenants are elvish. Avalonian knights all learn from an elvish teacher at some point. A shield may not always be available for defense, so defending with a blade must become a necessity."

The mention of elvish swordsmanship drew gasps and indignation from many present. The Emperor had not been offended, but rather even more intrigued. Such was the current topic of their talk. To Fluder, it was all hogwash. Swords were inferior to magic in all regards.

"So you are saying that the elves are actually equally skilled in archery and swords? My apologies Martial Lord, but the majority of elves are not the martially inclined as you believe them to be."

The man raised a brow with a questioning air. Jircniv took the opportunity to expand on his words.

"The only major collection of elves comes from the Elf Country to the southwest of the Empire and borders the Slane Theocracy." At the mention of the Slane Theocracy, he noticed a distinct cooling of both the Scarlet Swordsman and the woman's expressions. Jircniv tucked away that bit of information for later use. It seemed like they were not on good terms with them, or had some negative connotation with them. They weren't wanted by them were they? "The elvish king has had quarrel with them for some time, though the full details of the reasons why are not known to us. What little we do know is that they fight cowardly, ambush tactics from the safety of their forests. They are more like to flee than engage in melee combat."

Draconis nodded slowly as he took this information in. Lucia had covered a bit, but not this piece of information. It seemed as if the elves were of a very different sort here in this New World, at least on this continent. Thoughts of Luserina popped into his head. She had few melee skills, but could hold herself in melee combat evasively until able to shoot with little risk. He then thought of Akemi, and her older sister Yamaiko. Akemi was an apparent prodigy and was a skilled player in YGGDRASIL. The two of them had never really met, but he had heard stories.

"This man thinks elves can fight . . . how droll. You hear that you mongrel?" there was a grunt of pain, and a stifled whimper. As soft as it was, most people could not have heard it. Lucia and Draconis however, did quite clearly. Both dragons looked to their left at see a woman with both an elven boy and girl. Lucia frowned openly, but Draconis narrowed his gaze as he leveled a harsh look in the direction of the voice.

The crowd in that direction parted so that they had a clearer view of the noblewoman and her elf slaves. His eyes widened a fraction and he immediately had to bite his lip. All of his focus zoned in on their ears, clipped and only barely cleaned. Their eyes held deep bags under them, clearly displaying sleep deprivation. What clothes covered them were in the bare minimum for appearances in public, much less an audience like this.

Jircniv frowned as well. Who in the hells brought their slaves in? He'd flay the woman alive for such a breech.

"What is the meaning of this? Do you not know the protocols? Do not bring your slaves into these chambers." Jircniv spoke with a harsh authoritative voice. The nobles and other merchants agreed with their emperor and shook their heads in disappointment. It was horrid, bringing such filth before the Emperor.

He gestured to Baziwood and the Imperial Knight nodded in acknowledgement before motioning to one of the soldiers in the room. The armored man approached the woman and began to demand that she take her leave, when Draconis stood. Not a soul spoke or moved as the man walked crisply, purposefully toward her. Giving her a flat look down the bridge of his nose, those gathered truly began to comprehend his height.

"How much did you pay for them?" the question took everyone off guard. The words were sharp, short, and hid a thin veil of indignation.

The woman glared up at him in turn.

"What does it matter to you? You are not in charge here."

Jircniv frowned at this woman before speaking. "Answer the man! You have the audacity to bring slaves into the audience chambers, much less create a scene. Insufferable woman."

He muttered the final part under his breath. With all eyes upon them, she kept her glare on Draconis, though it was much less assured of herself now that the Bloody Emperor had voiced his own displeasure.

"Two hundred gold for both of them."

The man shocked them all by looking to the elves and kneeling in front of them. The act took the two off guard as well as they backed a step in surprise. Looking up at them, his expression was patient.

" _ **Is this true?"**_ When they looked at him in shock, followed by trepidation for what their mistress would do to them if they answered him, he frowned. _ **"Look at me please. I am asking if what she has said is true."**_

Jircniv looked to Fluder and the elderly man was running a hand down his beard in deep thought and concern.

"What is he saying Old Man?"

"He is speaking in the elvish tongue. Never have I heard it spoken so fluently from a non-elf. Perhaps his claim is not so outlandish after all. Perhaps the elves around this Queendom of Avalon truly are martially gifted."

Baziwood scratched his chin in interest. Elvish swordplay? Was that the fancy leaping strikes that he saw in the arena that day?

Lucia sighed. She knew that he would act in this way if he directly encountered something like this. He could not help everyone, but those within his sight?

" _ **The woman did."**_ The elven young man answered with a soft, quiet voice. _**"My sister and I were taken from our home by slave traders wanted quick coin. Our** **family and friends** **were killed trying to protect us."**_

" _ **How long ago was this?"**_

" _ **Ten years."**_

The young man had soft brunette hair, as did his sister. They were like chestnuts in their shade. Their eyes were bright green, yet dulled from their time as slaves. Both of their manes were cut short and he noticed that the sister remained quiet and behind her brother ever so slightly. When his gaze fell over her, she flinched and clutched her brother's pant leg. There was a definitive tremble in her hands. He recognized the signs of abuse.

More than likely at the hands of a man . . . or many of them.

It made him sick on the inside, but he tempered his anger. He continued his conversation with this brave elven lad in the elvish tongue, much to the beginning whispers of those present.

" _ **How many summers have past for the two of you?"**_

" _ **I am 67 . . . my sister is younger."**_

Whatever question Draconis was about to follow up with died on his tongue. Lucia could see him stiffen so slightly. His scent changed drastically . . . wildly . . . seething with fury. She did not learn the elven tongue, but knew when something was very wrong with what was just exchanged.

Standing to his full height, he looked to the emperor.

"I am not of your nation, and the Queendom does not condone nor practice slavery. I cannot dictate what your country does, but children? The equivalent of thirteen year olds in the elven realms . . ." he cut himself off from saying further and thus, adding fuel to his own flames.

Jircniv really did not care either way, but he was also perturbed by the slaves. Not their condition, but the situation at hand. Swiftly deciding to exercise his authority a bit, he sternly stared down the noblewoman in offense even as his words were directed toward Draconis.

"While I will not apologize for the slave business that exists not only in our empire, but other kingdoms as well, I will admit that even I find child slaves a bit distasteful. Even I cannot fully police such things. However, due to this breach of etiquette I will offer this to you in compensation for this gross offense." He gestured to the two elven children. "As Emperor of the Baharuth Empire; I, Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix declare her title to these two elves null and void. You may take them from their foolish mistress."

The declaration was met with nods from some due to the nature of their emperor in other displeased circumstances. She was getting off lightly. It would not have been uncommon for Jircniv to order the dissolution of her house and titles as well, or worse, execution upon the morrow. The woman seethed at Draconis even as he ignored her outright. His attention remained upon the elven children before him. They looked even younger than Aura and Mare did in Nazarick.

Kneeling before the young children of elf kin, he spoke again.

" _ **What would you want young ones? An elf should prize their freedom, but I would like to help you if you would allow me. You can refuse and I will provide you at least a bit of help to strike out on your own. Know that I will not be offended should you not wish my assistance."**_

The young siblings glanced nervously at each other. Was this truly happening?

" _ **We . . . we wish to leave this place and never return. You sir. You have an aura of goodness about you. It is almost palpable. I will place my trust in you. Please take us with you."**_ The little girl nodded in agreement with her older brother's words.

" _ **If that is what you wish."**_

Standing again, this time he did bow to Jircniv.

"You did not have to make such a gesture, but I will accept it for what it is. I will see your men upon the morrow to give them tutelage as agreed. If you would excuse us."

The Emperor nodded once, giving them permission while also signaling an end to the meeting.

As they watched him offer his hands to the two elves, who took them and flanked him either side as he left the chamber, Jircniv found it odd that they looked up to him with eyes that seemed to regain the life they previously did not have. A look of renewed trust. Of hope. It made him bitter on the inside. Where had that kind of person been during his earlier days? Oh sure, he had befriended Fluder, but this was not the same.

Leinas pondered those eyes she spied on the little elven girl. She too remembered a time when she had once been like that little child. Bright eyed and untainted by the world. Something within her heart stirred and she found it strange, but not wholly unpleasant.

Part of her wondered as well what kind of tutelage would await them upon the next day as well.

"What a day this has been."

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses!**

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Before I begin. Let me say that as the first chapter after the one year anniversary of this fic, I am surprised by the amount of support and follows this story has gotten.

I realize full well that many people liked Overlord because it is a spin on the usual Isekai genre of anime and Light Novels, where the protagonist is Evil, not good or even an antihero. I do not like some things in the Light Novels, especially from the time of the Men of the Kingdom Arc and onward.

Reading several fics and seeing that many OC's were just help or tag alongs to Ainz and Co. I figured to build upon a different group who had interactions but not necessarily alliances with the AoG crew. Enter the player that Touch Me drove off. It stated that this player was driven from the game. I don't know too many PLAYERS that are capable of doing THAT. Leave the guild or group? Sure. It happens all the time in the online games of today. But the GAME entirely? Yeesh.

However, it also bugged me that it did not implicitly state that this player left the game FOR GOOD. Enter Draconis.

Thank you all again for following The Exiled. I hope to have another chapter out by the end of the first week of the New Year at the latest. I have a fairly nice buffer of off days ahead of me this Holiday Week upcoming!

Now . . . without further delay . . . responding to your reviews.

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 **Wacko12:** Around the end of his interactions with the Baharuth Empire.

 **PervySageChuck:** The world shall never know . . .

 **rmarcano321:** True. So much to do and so little time to do it all in.

 **NecroSerpent101:** I hope you got my PM response to your review last chapter. If not just PM me and I'll resubmit it.

 **UndeadLord22:** What part was false?

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Indeed it is. I am glad you enjoy it.

 **OverWarlord:** The Poll should be up now . . . I hope . . .

 **MadDan90:** That word count was not intentional. Honestly I didn't realize it until you pointed it out.

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** I am glad that I'm not the only one. Evil to me gets stale. Rarely does the antagonists or villains snag my attention and keep me interested. At least here lately in the anime world.

 **Dimension Distorter:** Oh Draconis will find out. I assure you. Heh heh.

 **PossessedHunter:** I know right?! YGGDRASIL and there is so little Norse reference . . . I mean . . . REALLY?

 **KamenRider:** I am currently debating that.

 **Guest:** I am glad you are enjoying it.

 **Tamagat:** An interesting tidbit for you and all other readers out there. The game of YGGDRASIL's Tier Magic system does NOT require anyone to say the name of their spells. Many Players DO however as a courtesy for party members and raid members to warn them of certain spells and their effects. Things like that become second nature and to the outsider, may seem bizarre and even childish. Yet it becomes so ingrained that many gamers do it anyway. Its an ingrained behavior that is hard to break. Though in a future chapter . . . well keep reading to find out!

 **Dragongod:** No, I have not forgotten about Furious Flame Dragon Lord nor his father on the Argland Council.

 **Generation Zero:** Thanks for chiming in! I am glad you are enjoying the story.

 **Doraemax:** Yes, the readers as a collective tended to enjoy that moment.

* * *

 **Merry Christmas to all who celebrate it. Happy Holidays to those of you who don't and stay safe everyone! See you next chapter!**


	33. Chapter 31: The Pain Behind the Man

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Notes and Disclaimer**

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Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

As a notification to all you readers out there; thank you for keeping with this fic and this fic writer over the past year. It hasn't always been smooth, but progress never is! Thank you all for the support you show and I will do my best to continue to entertain!

As a bit of a heads up this year, I intend to get through a significant portion of Draconis's side of things before getting back to Artorias and Roble again.

Intermingled during Draconis's side of the story, we will be dipping into Re-Estize for the Men of the Kingdom Arc, among other things. So many powerful factions rising up from nowhere tends to attract attention . . . Expect to see Argland Council State involvement and a bit more of Blue Roses and Rigrit.

Enjoy the chapter and don't forget to review!

* * *

 **Chapter 31: The Pain Behind the Man**

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Draconis returned to the Shining Leaf Inn with Lucia and the elven siblings in tow. They drew looks of disapproval which Draconis pointedly ignored and guided the two children with care up to his room. As the door closed, he gestured to the plush bed and chairs.

" _ **You may rest and relax. I will call for one of my retainers to help clean you both up."**_

Lucia growled at him as he spoke in the ancient High Elven tongue. Certain languages were not automatically translated and deciphered by the inherit traits of magic for those from YGGDRASIL. It was the origin of this world's "modern" elven so to speak. As such, she did not think to write her knowledge of the language into her backstory. As a result, she could not understand him.

"Come now Draconis, I _could_ make use of a [ _Comprehend Languages_ ] spell, but that seems like a waste."

He gave her a cheeky smile and laughed openly at her pouting expression.

"I know you were never one for heavy role play Lucia, but its seems like such care and attention to detail has given me quite an advantage here. Be at ease. I'm only trying to ensure that the young ones are comfortable. Even if they voiced their trust in me, this is a very sudden shift."

"You don't have kids?" The crestfallen look that crossed his face made Lucia immediately regret her choice of words. "I . . . ! I am sorry, I did not mean to suggest . . ."

He shook his head slightly and held up both hands to her in a placating gesture.

"No, I am not offended. To answer your question, Artorias and I have not had any children. We have talked about it though." he wore an unusually shy expression and turned slightly pink in the face.

She gawked at her draconic peer. "Are you . . . ? You ARE! You're being shy!"

"Oh stop it! I have to get these two young ones settled and comfortable."

He shuffled over to the two children who found the joking and teasing between these two adults entertaining. Despite his embarrassment, he found their giggles and smiles worth the uncomfortable jibing from his peer. Taking a seat in the chair as the siblings sat on the most comfy bed they had ever experienced. Leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees, he spoke in the normal language. He made sure to keep his voice amiable and kind.

"Young ones, if you want to keep speaking in the ancient elven tongue, you can. However, for the benefit of my friend, it would be better to talk in the common tongue."

" _ **She cannot speak elven?"**_ The question was innocent and held no negative tones, but Draconis laughed and ignored the scowl he was getting from Lucia.

"No, she cannot speak the ancient elvish tongue without magical aide."

Lucia folded her arms across her chest and huffed in indignation. "Well excuse me!"

"Oh don't you give me that Lucia. You have been around long enough to have learned and become affluent in many languages, not just elven."

The woman clicked her tongue loudly and sulked like a kid. The two elven kids tilted their heads to either side in confusion. Draconis smiled easily at them and continued to talk to them.

"Do not worry about that. Just speak as you would like, however!" He smiled broadly. "The two of you must be properly cared for, and I will not allow you both to remain so roughed up."

He stood from the seat and held his cloak up like a curtain. Giving them both a mischievous grin that made their eyes grow wide in surprise, he gave them a playful wink to soothe their nerves. "Would you like to meet who I will have taking care of you? You need not fear, she will like you both I promise."

They both nodded slowly. Despite their anxious hearts, the look he gave them eased their nerves. He chuckled lightly.

"Luserina? Would you show yourself please?"

He whipped his cloak back with a flourish and Luserina was revealed . . . [ _Gate_ ] appearing behind the cloak before he whisked back his makeshift curtain. Her cinnamon brunette locks and crystal azure green eyes caught their attention immediately. More than that though, were her clothes and her ears . . .

Her raiments were soft greens and velvety tans with golden filigree. The cloth was almost sheer yet not see through and flowed like a soft breeze. The blouse was worn loosely with a mid shin length skirt that was woven of sturdier fabric. Luserina wore calve wrap around sandles with her toes exposed. An elegant shoulder cape of dark blue and gold covered her left side. A golden circlet framed her forehead with falcon's feathers draped on the right of her face.

[ _Elven Noble's Raiments_ ] enhanced all of Luserina's abilities and racial traits. She wore them to formal outings in Avalon and The Lair. Though she preferred her ranger's combat gear, she did "clean up" beautifully.

Yet despite this elegance that they had only heard tales of in elven lore and history, it was her ears that awed them both.

" _ **Brother! Her ears!"**_ The younger sibling ogled her elder's ears. Luserina's ears were longer and more tapered than other elves that they had been around. Even their late mother's beautiful ears were not as long and shapely as this woman's! Was she a royal blooded ancestor?

For Luserina, she kept a warm smile at seeing the elven children, but within her spirit her soul cried out in anguish at the sight of their bruised and cut off ear tips. The mutilation an affront to decent treatment of another humanoid. Stepping forward, she dropped to a knee before both of them before bringing them into her arms in a warm hug.

" _ **You dear children. You are safe now. Know that no one will ever abuse you again."**_ Her elven speech resonated within them. She had the same properties and projection as the Elven King of the forest kingdom, but her presence was a comfort and not oppressive at all. At the warmth of her words and embrace, they were both engulfed with a feeling of home. Of their lost mother and father. Trembling hands from the younger sister only wrapped halfway around Luserina in a hug despite their lithe builds. The boy sniffed, trying, but failing to contain the flood of memories and emotions. The two began to wail and cry in both sorrow for the lost and joy for the hope.

Draconis and Lucia both glanced at each other as Luserina merely stroked the backs of their heads in soothing motions as she murmured words of succor and comfort in their tongue. Draconis nodded subtly and he silently excused himself to step out onto the veranda of the room and took in the setting sun air.

 _I will never be able to replace the loss and emptiness of lost loved ones._ He looked up into the darkening skies and could make out the first visible stars above. _I hope you are okay with us watching over them in your stead._

He gave a small nod, hoping that the spirits of the parents they lost would approve. A small part of him smiled as a pair of shooting stars flashed by as if to grant him their blessings. The man grit his teeth at the thoughts of other child slaves in the region, but he knew full well that rocking the nation's underworld despite possessing the power to actually do something would not help the situation of the nations as a whole.

" _ **Have care young one. Unlike so many others, you actually possess the longevity to see such reforms done properly. Though certain elements of this dark underworld society have certainly earned the wrath of being engulfed by a righteous inferno by their very roots!"**_

"I am not as impulsive and fury driven as I was in the past! Do not try to goad me into perilous action."

Draconis had wondered when this presence . . . this . . . voice would resonate with him yet again.

"Are you the dragon spirit within me?"

A powerful laughter pulsated through his core being. It nearly knocked him off of his balance at the force. Why did this presence and voice feel so damned familiar?!

" _ **You have received a warning from those beyond the material realms. That could serve you well, or it could crutch your growth. Very well. I will be watching my Emissary."**_

Those last words sent a dreaded chill up his spine.

"Emissary? No . . . it can't be!"

"What can't be?" The hand on his shoulder startled him and Draconis actually flinched before pulling way before realizing that it was only Lucia. Her eyes held genuine worry at the sudden ashen expression and dilated pupils of her once student. "Draconis? Is everything alright?"

He frowned as he held his hands before his eyes. He could see the blood upon them even though there was none there now. The screams of dead and dying echoed in his ears as did the roar of gunfire and explosions. Of tanks and aircraft. The coughing of the dying and the pollution so thick the sun barely got through.

The screams of dragons, of dying soldiers upon parapets and castle fortifications. Dragons breath and screeches of fury. He shuddered as they events of the Dragonsong War resonated within him. He knew they were a game story, but now . . .

"I'm not entirely sure."

Lucia frowned at him in concern.

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **Capital**

* * *

Deidre sat at a table with the potion that Draconis had given her several days ago. The crystal vial sparkled in the light and the vibrant blue liquid seemed call to her soul. Drinking it would grant her the knowledge to expand her horizons further and take a monumental step forward. Yet despite everything that the Knight Most Heavenly's subordinates had assured her of, something held her back. She could not quite place it.

"You know, if you keep staring at it, it's not going to tell you what decision to make." She glanced to her right as she frowned at the sudden interloper. It was the Archmage Todd.

"Master Mage Todd. I . . . I am sorry. I do not mean to spurn your master's generosity, but I feel like by making use of this, I would be cheating the years it would normally take to cultivate whatever skills and powers. I am an elf!" She removed the cowl that hid her ears. A great portion of her soul told her that within the company of Draconis's forces, she would not be spurned for her heritage. "I actually have the years of longevity to learn such skills without having to resort to an alchemical concoction."

Todd nodded in understanding of her concerns. Moving across from her, she gave him a curious look. The Archmage motioned to the seat across from her. "If I may join you?"

Surprised by his frankness and manners, something that he normally disregarded around his comrades, she acquiesced to his request. He took a seat in the chair and gestured carefully to the item of their conversation.

"The [ _Job Class Potion_ ] as we call it is an item that costs a moderate amount to craft. Though our Liege Lord Draconis _can_ craft them, he honestly does not have the patience for the alchemical aspects of the process. That, he normally leaves to the Master Craftsmen, or myself in this case."

She glanced from the potion to him and back again before finding her voice. "Lord Draconis does not have the patience? He seems like a level headed leader."

Todd sighed as he took out a long pipe. Ramming the leaves and other comfort burning items into the holder, he lit the mixture within with a snap of his fingers as a spark of fire skipped from his hand to the pipe. Taking a couple of test draws on the pipe before receiving a good pull, he made an odd face while in thought a few times before elaborating.

"He works hard to ensure that he does. We are grateful that he is so concerned about our welfare and even that of our foes. Yet underneath that fastidious persona, lies a passionate heart and soul. Those that ignite that passion in the wrong ways and earn his ire almost never are forgotten. For all of his benevolence, if you break his trust or trample upon the innocent, his fury knows few boundaries."

Imagining the tall, crimson haired knight furious was admittedly hard to imagine, but the dark look that Todd wore spoke otherwise. He was a man that had apparently seen . . . _things_.

 _I suppose it would be a_ bit _much to just assume that Draconis was infinitely benevolent. A knight should be known for being strict and ruthless when the it was demanded of him._

As she stewed in her thoughts, another pair walked up to the table. It was Guardian Commander Samael and Queen Draudillon. The elven ranger of Crystal Tear made to stand, but the dragon blooded queen forestalled her by holding up a hand. Samael nodded to Todd and the Archmage nodded in return even as he bowed in his seat respectfully toward Draudillon.

"I overheard your conversation Archmage Todd. If it is not too presumptuous of me, I would like to take the opportunity to learn more about your liege from you and Samael."

The two men exchanged looks before Samael nodded once and Todd gestured to the remaining chairs available at the table.

"What is it you would like to learn?"

Glancing at Samael, Draudillon pondered for a moment on how to word her inquiry. It seemed a bit rude to her personally to question the worries of her gracious benefactor, but it was obvious to her that whatever the man's problems, these people still remained with him.

"Please understand that I do not mean to question his person, but I do wish to learn about the man you follow. Commander, you mentioned that he has his own struggles and burdens. I can understand the weight of being in a position that holds others into account and representation as queen, but surely his is not as weighted. He is a military commander obviously, but what other things has he shouldered?"

Both Guardians of The Lair stared at the potion on the table for a long stretch before Todd brought forth a journal from the sleeve of his robes. Placing the book upon the table, he opened it to the first page. From the parchment held within its bindings, a ghostly image accurately depicting Draconis emerged from a light haze. The man wore very different clothes that what they had previously seen him adorn. In truth, they looked vapidly plain.

"Other than one of the strongest casters of The Lair and Lord Draconis's subordinates, I am also it's unofficial historian and book keeper. As such I keep a meticulous log of our Lord's activities."

Samael gave him a surprised look. "Is this why you remained neutral weeks ago?"

The Archmage gave him a solemn nod. "It is Samael. I have known for some time now. Of his struggles and the efforts and lengths he puts forth to ensure our happiness."

Deidre and Draudillon stared at the eerily accurate representation of the man. He appeared the same as he did now, but his eyes seemed brighter, more alive and filled with wonder.

"Lord Draconis never knew his dragon lineage previously. He learned of his powers from an old mentor and when he had shown enough proficiency and responsibility in the fundamentals, he embarked on his journey of discovery outside his mentor's simple home."

The image changed and they saw him learning both from mages and from warriors. The largest detail though was that he was learning swordsmanship from an elf! The elven instructor was handsome and he seemed pleased with Draconis's progress. There was a definite sign of camaraderie between master and pupil. Todd smiled at the images.

"So your Liege was not born a noble?"

"Not that we are aware, no. Though dragon society does indeed have their own form of hierarchy, we are not privy to it. Even Samael here is not privy to all the details and he is one of them."

The gray haired man nodded in acceptance and acknowledgment.

"I know in my blood and being that Lord Draconis is of higher stock than I, but not by how many levels of society. The dragon politics are ancient and I am but a young adult in a society of ancient wyrms."

Draudillon nodded. This was indeed true if what her great grandfather Brightness Dragon Lord attested to in his old records left within her library.

Newborns were wyrmlings, aging over time and power. The zenith of age categories was ancient wyrms of other one thousand years. Those dragons were the true Dragon Lords, but with the war between Dragon Lords and the Eight Greed Kings, the majority of them were decimated. The Dragon Lords now were no older than Mature Adults, an age category before wyrm that was followed by ancient wyrm. Most of Brightness Dragon Lord stated that the difference between Wyrm and Ancient Wyrm was four hundred years. Such a thing boggled her mind.

"Draconis is of dragon blood, is he full blooded? A True Dragon?"

The two men pondered whether or not to admit it. In the end Samael and Todd nodded and Samael answered the ruler of the Dragon Kingdom.

"Yes, our liege is indeed a one of the True Dragons. With his acquired powers however, his Dragon Society class does not match his age."

Deidre swallowed. Her Talent still coated Samael and Todd with obsidian black skulls, but now they radiated a green outer rim that told her they were friendly . . . allies. _A True Dragon! It is not small wonder my Talent reacted the way it did. No small wonder he views humanity the way he does. Yet he seems more human than many of them. No . . . human does not sound appropriate . . . more_ humane _? What history has he lived through, much less observed?_

"How old is Lord Draconis?" The question left her lips before she realized it and blushed when they gave her an odd look.

"According to the talks and discussions I have had with him at length, he has been around for over seven hundred years. Seven hundred and eighty-six to be precise."

Draudillon and Deidre both gawked.

In YGGDRASIL, the concept of a calender was not really solidified. It did have a definitive day and night cycle, yet the terms of a week, month, and year were not truly hard coded. As such, the "seasons" so to speak did not truly line up with traditional universal calenders of Earth. The backgrounds written by the plethora of players were the truth of the avatars they played and the data crystals entered into their histories and other bits and pieces now were their realities.

Refocusing on the image of Draconis from this magical tome, they watched as Todd turned the pages and it changed to him fighting against a group of people. The two women gasped and were appalled. He was bloodied and beaten while holding a sword with a broken blade and a shattered shield while standing between a group of six people and a feline woman. Of those six, all but one were human. It stunned them both.

"What? Humans beating a True Dragon? Is this truly Lord Draconis?"

Todd scowled as he nodded, but he did not say anything. The leader of this group bashed him aside with a great axe, the shield losing what little he had left and sending him flying into a building. As he tried to recover, they slew the feline girl, laughing all the while. It was enough to make them sick, but they could see cold rage in Draconis's eyes.

He exploded in a pillar of crimson flames and glowing golden light that reached far into the heavens. The six assailants turned in shock as the light died down and in the place of a human appearance, was a gleaming, golden dragon wyrmling with four short, glowing wings of bright luminescent scales that glowed a golden yellow. Yet for all of the fine glory he was hardly the size of a pony. The group laughed at him, taunting and making some kind of obscene gestures.

The dragon youngling Draconis opened his maw and proceeded to bathe them in dragon's breath, the onslaught incinerating two of them completely to ashes before the other four could respond. The rest of them regrouped and fought him, beating him with better numbers and spreading out. Draconis had managed to kill one more of them, ripping out his throat with a vicious, tearing bite of fangs.

A flash of light cut down the remaining attackers as a man in silver armor and red shoulder mantle came to his aide.

"Who is that?"

"That is one of the few men that Lord Draconis fully acknowledges as superior to him. Lord Touch Me of what would become one of the most notorious factions of the world. Lord Touch Me would teach Lord Draconis much about shield and sword fighting and how to adapt it to the previous lessons he had learned up to the time he rescued our liege."

Draudillon was confused. Even young dragons were more than humans could handle, so what was that? Deidre seemed to be just as disconcerted by such a sight.

"Were humans back then so strong?"

Todd sighed and shook his head negatively. "No, they were not, but certain paragons rose to great prominence. Not all of them as you can see, were exactly noble. You need not be so concerned about the lack of power by comparison to our liege. Even he started somewhere. I do not think it needed, but he does have literal centuries on all of us in that regard."

Both women nodded and reflected on that morsel offered to them. It was enlightening, knowing that this paragon also began from surprisingly humble beginnings. The tome before them fluttered through pages before resting again and a different image appeared before them. In this one, he was dressed in much finer armor and also wore a cloak. The man called Touch Me was also there, but the rest of their company created a feeling of dread. A skeletal caster, and several other monstrous creatures stood with them against a large group of humans.

"What is this?"

"I am not proud to say this, but it is an important facet of our liege's mindset. In the ancient times, human kind and their fellow human like races of elves, dwarves, dark elves, and other similar kinds, once interacted on more peaceable terms with a fair number of non human races. But those humans who discovered that something about triumphing over their non human neighbors granted them growth and power, let it go to their heads. They formed hunting parties with the sole purpose of hunting down others who had no intentions of hunting them and slaughtered them ruthlessly."

The group that Draconis was with fought to defend themselves and victory was achieved. The group left the dead and departed. Similar encounters where shown and the two women noticed that more and more non humans began to rally with them. But as they did, the group began to become more and more brutal in their killing. They could see a look of disgust cross Draconis's features.

"Our liege remained with them until the events that lead to a sacred treasure the group found being stolen caused a rift in how to they were to respond, for the thief was not human. Touch Me and Draconis had a falling out and Draconis left them, striking out on his own. The group had become too vindictive in their methods and now, with significantly increased powers, hunting humans and even other non humans out of spite or merely to show that they were not to be oppressed anymore, or at least, not without dire consequence."

Draconis was seen in small towns and large, humans abound, helping them as he had been in the past. Defending those coming under attack, but not doing more than he had to in their defense. Some he let go, others who were particularly vile, he showed little mercy. Yet in all of them, he showed efforts in refusing to let himself dive over the edge.

Yet again it changed, but this new set of pages and imagery made them swallow. A hellscape. The lands were littered with the dead and dying in droves. Human and non human, dragons, hoards of them dotted the land far into the horizon. What was this horrible scene? In the distance, dragons swarmed bastions housing people and soldiers. He fended off a dragon before it could render death to the small family in front of it. The creature glared at him and roared in fury, but Draconis transformed, his presence matching that of the Awakened Form he unleashed in her throne room days ago. The dragon backed down in what looked to be shock.

Todd and Samael both frowned.

"This is from the Dragonsong War. The thousand year long conflict between the nation of Ishgard and the dragon lands of Dravania. Our liege sided with the dragons, but fought to keep the fighting focused, not indiscriminate. He sought out the roots of the corruption of man's betrayal of the First Sire and his First Brood. Avalon stood beside the dragons during this conflict much as our lord did. The death toll was horrendous on both sides."

Both women swallowed audibly from Samael's heavy tone. The image shifted to a more somber and solemn scene. Draconis and what appeared to be the Lady Lucia in drastically different garb behind him stood a set of individuals. Twelve of them wore armor of various makes, but they were all illustrious. One man wore the aura of a caster like some kind of raiment while the final person was of such bearing that Draudillon had no doubt in her mind.

"Is that? Is she the Queen that Lord Draconis spoke of? The Queen of Avalon?"

The two men nodded in response. As the scene panned outward, both the Queen of the Dragon Kingdom and the member of Crystal Tear grew ashen.

It was a mausoleum . . . overflowing with tributes to the deceased. The morbid structure stretched for miles. Every where lay nothing but graves and coffins, funeral pyres burned across the locale like wildfires. Mourners were scattered everywhere and mixed between them all were humans, heteromorphs, and dragons alike. All weeping for the lives lost.

"Oh gods . . ."

"The Dragonsong War ended with the slaying of those at the head of both sides of the conflict. The Archbishop of the Ishgardian Orthodox Church: Archbishop Excellus Argath Thordan XVI and his guardians of the Holy Mount of Halone. And for the Dravanians . . . it was Niddhog, one of Midgardsomer's First Brood. Lord Draconis actually lost his life in that final battle. Only the timely powers of Archmage Merlin managed to bring him back before the Queen lost him permanently."

The admission of Draconis dying made the two women freeze in whatever words they were trying to place together. What kind of fighting was this? This was no war . . . this was beyond the comprehension of them both. Draudillon frowned, just how long ago was this war? Her great grandfather had never made mention of this conflict.

"Commander Samael, Archmage Todd. I do not mean to question the validity of all of this, but how long ago did this conflict occur? Where is this Ishgard and Dravania?"

Both of the Guardians of The Lair frowned. Ever since their arrival, Chronos's words of their being transported to a new celestial body confounded even them. The only real thing that had prevented them from questioning Chronos's divinations was Draconis's odd acceptance of it all. Yet Draudillon was proving Draconis's words of caution true.

" _Just because we are overwhelmingly powerful, does not mean we are invincible. There will be other ways we will be vulnerable."_

As the two men struggled to find the right way to explain things, they silently cursed the insightful observation of the Queen of the Dragon Kingdom. How well informed were these New World denizens in th subject of astrology?

"Perhaps that is a question better suited for me, Your Majesty." The newcomer's voice made them turn to see Chronos walked toward them. Samael frowned deeply at his presence.

"Chronos? What are doing away from The Lair?"

The Seraphim Empyrean smiled at his peer and bowed to the two women at the table before taking a seat. He kept his appearance simple and clean. White robes with his sapphire sash that traveled from shoulder to waste revealed close toed shoes of white. He had hidden away his wings and the other telltale signs of his celestial nature. His golden blond hair still shined in the sun however.

"Honestly? I was watching the progress our forces were making in aiding the Dragon Kingdom, when I noticed you both enlightening Queen Draudillon and Lady Deidre about our Lord's past. For truth, how did you two not think that doing so would not render more questions than answers from them?"

He shook his head in mock admonishment of his friends. Todd groaned in frustration at himself for not realizing and speaking too much. Samael was never terribly good at discretion, but something about Draudillon made him want to be open with the woman.

Chronos gave him a wry smile and the Shadow dragon sulked at being caught.

 _Am I really that obvious? Then again, it_ is _Chronos, of course he would be able to tell. Damn it all, I feel like a welp._

Draudillon considered this new man for a moment. Something about him seemed vastly different. The man took a seat and produced a disc like device from his sleeve. Placing the object upon the table, the small disc twirled and hissed slightly as it expanded and produced an image in the air above it. From the spherical image, the space it projected filled with images of gateways and portals.

Chronos had done his research and there was little to no knowledge whatsoever into astrology and the space beyond the world. He instead found a profound believe in the planes of existence. This would work in the place of planets. It would also make the most sense.

In YGGDRASIL, certain gateways and portals acted in a similar manner, transporting players to different planes of existence. Thus the "realms" in which certain creatures were natural inhabitants of. Hel's underworld of the dead was dominated by undead, fiends, and other daemons. Asgard was widely considered the celestial's playgrounds. Midgard was the realm of mortals and held a grand mixture of beings. The elements also had their own planes. There were even ones for the Fae, others for beings of pure Order, or Chaos respectively.

The Seraphim Empyrean began to explain the concept of planar existences to the two women, yet Samael and Todd intently listened as well. Todd for an academic purpose, Samael to both maintain the established information sharing and to better understand it himself.

* * *

 **Tildeus**

* * *

Cecilia felt a chill go up her spine as she finished the logistical paperwork for the beastmen they captured after Terramist's failed assault on the village. The Lord and the Knight Commander filing their own reports back to The Lair noticed her shiver and looked to her in concern.

"My Lady? Are you cold?"

She absently rubbed her arms in a vain attempt at warding off the chill she felt.

"No, I am fine. I just feel like something momentous yet chilling has occurred and I missed it. Perhaps Commander Samael actually is polishing his studies?"

The two men chuckled at her jab at the Guardian Commander. He was a man of action far more than he was of study and secretarial work. It was not a secret that the man hated paperwork and studies unless it was martial in nature. But there was no way he would start now . . . was there?

* * *

 **Slane Theocracy**

* * *

"What do you mean? This had better not be one of those slaps on the wrist meetings boya."

The Captain of the Black Scripture merely remained silent at Zesshi Zetsumei's complaining as she followed him to the private meeting sanctuary. He honestly had no clue as to what the Cardinals wanted by meeting today. He was only told to retrieve the Extra Seat of the Black Scriptures and to meet with the Cardinals within the first half of the day.

He had been summoned while attending a matchmaking session to find himself a wife. Needless to say, the prospects and whispers that accompanied his sudden summons was a bit perturbing. Arriving before the doors to the chambers, he nodded to the guard and they were allowed within.

Inside, the Cardinals of the Slane Theocracy awaited. Yet they were not the only ones. There at the center of the room stood the son of Brigthness Dragon Lord and three others. One of them was Thousand Eyes Astrologer . . . but the other two made the Captain grit his teeth.

The Grand Marshal of the formal military of the Theocracy was here. Grand Marshal Retgard Sol Reverence had risen through the ranks through many battles against the enemies of the Theocracy. He served with great distinction and headed up many of the ideologies concerning the ever continuing war on the Elf Kingdom. He was the first to motion for caution and gradual, slow encroachment into the forests of the elves, instead of blindly rushing in, or defacing the forest itself.

In truth, he was once a member of the Black Scriptures, but stepped down to fulfill the role of Grand Marshal for the sake of the people and the military's morale. While he was not a Godkin, and not as powerful as the Captain of the Black Scripture, he was still stronger than most. The equivalent of an Orichalcum Class Adventurer.

The other man was the leader of the Executive branch of the government. What were these two doing here?

Raymond Zarg Lauransan, the Cardinal of Earth and Commanding Cardinal of the Six took an analytical glance around the room before beginning.

"We will now conduct the business of this meeting. None of us here and now should have to subject themselves to this kind of gathering, but necessity has demanded it of us all."

There were grim nods from the Cardinals. Yet the Grand Marshal and head of the Executive branch seemed to be in the dark. That fact gave the Captain of the Black Scripture a bit of comfort. He did not like being in the dark if he could help it. Fighting the unpredictable was normal, but not knowing information during a meeting like this was nerve wracking if it was not a briefing.

"Recently we have had the Sunlight Scriptures disappear completely from the map with not apparent cause. We must assume that this magic caster they ran into while attempting to destroy the man Gazef Stronoff of Re-Estize put an end to all of them."

The Grand Marshal and Executive leader balked at that news. The Captain of the Black Scriptures had already been made aware of this through reports. The magic caster proclaiming himself as Ainz Ooal Gown must be fiercely powerful to contend with the Sunlight Scriptures.

"Impossible. One magic caster?" The Grand Marshal scoffed a bit at that news.

Dominic Ihre Partouche, the Cardinal of Wind spoke next, his voice reverberated with anger. It was understandable really . . . Having been a member of the Sunlight Scriptures and a hero who had fought many demi-humans in the name of the Theocracy, the idea that the whole Scripture had been wiped out was an affront. His anger burned for the loss of men he considered to be like a brotherhood from his younger days when he was active.

"The last thing that was seen during their mission through the long range observation magic by the Miko Priestesses was the magic caster announcing himself to them before being attacked by the Sunlight Scriptures. Nothing could be accurately made out afterward. It was as if counter spells were in place to prevent such magic."

The group all nodded grimly. This was a definite concern, but was that really the only reason that they had been called? The Cardinal of Water, Ginedine Delan Guelfi held up a hand and motioned as he spoke. His voice was surprisingly clear for his age, which no one could truly deduce due to his dusty brown skin. Despite this, no one could match the man's intellect. His mind was sharper than swords and could pierce the veil of mysteries and make deductions faster than the wind.

"There is also the issue of the vampire that the Black Scriptures lead by our Captain here encountered. It killed two of our Black Scripture members and wounded Lady Kaire with an injury that ultimately led to her death upon arriving back within our borders. Its attack damaged the Sacred Treasure of the Six Great Gods!" The indignation in his voice was shared by all present with the exception of Zesshi, who fought the urge to roll her eyes at them all. It was an ugly looking dress and what was the fun in mind controlling someone?

Ginedine continued speaking. "However, our right to avenge our losses and blow to our own has been stolen. The Kingdom of Re-Estize filed reports that their newest Adamantite Team defeated the vampire. Members of our own Windflower Scriptures verified the battle site damage themselves."

The Captain of the Black Scriptures looked at the Cardinal of Water in shock. That couldn't be! That would mean that Re-Estize, that fetid and rotting kingdom had a group strong enough to match their Black Scriptures along with the Extra Seat! Ginedine seemed to read his thoughts and nodded in his direction. Behind him, Zesshi raised eyebrows in interest.

 _Oh? Now there's another group of powerful individuals? I wonder which is stronger? No . . . boya said that I was the stronger between the vampire so these adventurers as a group are stronger. I want the person stronger than me!_

"Who is this group?"

"They are called Darkness and are lead by a man known only as Momon. The people call him The Dark Hero for the adamantite full plate armor and swords he wields."

As they all pondered on that, the Cardinal of Fire, Berenice Nagua Santini, a matronly looking woman a slight bit plump perhaps due to her age, interjected her bit.

"All of that is important. For we all feel the loses all around, however, I feel that partially due to all of this, a new situation has come up." They all looked to her in concern.

Having completely lost the Sunlight Scriptures and having two losses of the Black Scripture in addition to the damaging of a Sacred Treasure and the loss of Lady Kaire with it was already harsh to deal with. At this rate it would take them ten years to regain all of that lost power.

"One of the three squads of the Clearwater Scripture have gone missing."

The group of individuals gathered clenched fists, silently swore oaths, or shook their heads in frustration. First the Sunlight, then the Black, and now the Clearwater Scriptures?

"Where . . . ? Never mind that part, _when_ did they depart? No official mission has been declared by any of us to warrant their departure!"

The confusion and annoyance of the Cardinal of Wind, Dominic was well within his and everyone's right to be. To have even more losses and so tightly close together in little more than a quarter of the year was unthinkable. Perhaps the only saving grace for this situation now was that they were not outright declared killed.

Yvon Jasna Dracrowa, the Cardinal of Light harumph'ed and crossed his arms over his chest. Skinny to the point of nearly being considered gaunt, his narrowed eyes seemed to pierce all present save Zesshi. The specialist in divine magic frowned heavily at this news in particular before giving voice to his own concerns.

"That may be, but I assume that this has to do with Thousand Eyes being brought here along with the good Captain and the Extra Seat?"

The 11th Seat of the Black Scriptures nodded.

"It does. As you were made aware in my reports earlier, several of our divine defense mages and other intelligence agents encountered an intelligence magic assault unlike any we have ever experienced in the history of the nation."

Zesshi huffed at the girl's words and the Cardinals glared at her in a unified front, but she shrugged them off. Everyone else had read the reports and found them deeply disturbing. They were not certain what the attacker was looking for, but surmised that whatever it was, that it was not important, other not of interest to them.

"As the Cardinals at the least are presently aware of, when I attempted to trace the magic back, I was halted by an angel. A Seraphim Empyrean."

The Executive head of government and the Grand Marshal Reverence were stunned. The rest of those present nodded grimly. They were beginning to piece together where this tale was taking them.

"He warned me not to delve any further. Further attempts to discover anything only resulted in my being able to see the general location the angel is at. I was only given one other piece of information and that was that he served a man worthy of his loyalty."

The Grand Marshal scowled in indignation and disbelief.

"Such a claim is nearly heresy. The Six Great Gods proclaimed that Seraphim Empyrean were celestial entities that they themselves would have supplicated to! Direct servants of the higher realms!"

The Executive leader nodded in agreement. The six Cardinals frowned but did not speak. They had already heard about this news from Thousand Eyes before now.

"I deeply apologize, but my curiosity got the better of me. I requested help in investigating this angel. Yet ever since their last report back, I have had not luck in hailing them."

The heavy feeling of disappointment, anger, and consternation ran rampant among all the Cardinals and their fellow leaders. Thousand Eyes shivered, but did not step away. She knew this day would come, better to be honest and upfront than try and hide her part in the disappearance of the Clearwater Scripture squad. The first to voice their anger at her was obvious, Dominic glared at her.

"You do not have that kind of authority! By the Six what were you thinking?!"

Raymond held up a hand and spoke. Even though he too was disgruntled with Thousand Eyes, he was proud that she held enough integrity and character to come forth with the truth without hesitation and own up to her mistake. Surely she would be reprimanded, but not too severely. She was a Black Scripture member after all. Given the losses they had incurred already, to him at least, it would be utter folly to inflict a punishment on her that would keep her from her duties.

"Peace Dominic. The girl has the virtue and courage to admit her mistakes without deception. She also has accepted the responsibility and as such we should show her mercy in this case. Though it is frustrating, given the fact that we are reeling from recent incidents, it would be unwise to be overzealous in reprimanding her."

The Cardinal of Wind grit his teeth. Despite his frustrations, he knew that Raymond was being level headed and such a trait was one of the reasons why he was the commander of them despite being the youngest of them. Releasing an irritated breath, he nodded grudgingly in acceptance and agreement. It would not do to be obstinate here.

"I see your point Raymond. Yet the question still remains. What shall we do?"

The group pondered on that for a bit. What would they do indeed? In the back of the room, another man stood to the side, out of view, but still well within hearing range. He was noticed by the son of Brightness Dragon Lord, but was ignored. It was not his place to call out the man in the shadows.

 _What an interesting turn of events . . . I should let the Pontifex know._

With that thought, he slipped off and out of the chamber with nary a sound. Let them make discussion. There were bigger fish to catch.

* * *

 **Arwintar**

 **Castle Training Grounds**

* * *

The garrison of the Orders of the Empire had turned out to see the talk of the castle. The Martial Lord would be instructing swordplay! The lower ranking soldiers chattered excitedly, but the veterans and officers were skeptical. What could a gladiator do to show them the ways of combat? Fighting monsters was not their job. It was best to leave that work to those who specialized. They were soldiers fit and trained to fight their enemies. Monsters were in a way . . . beneath them. A Worker's job, or adventurers with nothing better to do.

Many of the Earth Guard and Imperial Guard were present as well. Jircniv was also present with the Imperial Knights. Fluder locked himself back in his research, deeming the sword instruction mere trinkets compared to true magic. Despite the fierce nature that intrigued him, if he could not see anything then of magical nature, then he was not going to waste his time on it.

Draconis entered the grounds with Lucia close behind. The soldiers were a bit surprised at what they saw. Jircniv raised a brow with interest. The man had changed his outfit again. This time, he wore knee high, fold down collar boots with fine leggings tucked into the footwear. His left forearm and hand were encased in a silver white arm guard and fingerless glove. Draped over it was a half cloak that was held in place across his right collar and flowed over his left arm and down his back. Yet it kept his right arm free for movements. The same dragon like coat of arms was woven into the fabric. It was still of that shade of blue from the day before, but lined in dark red.

He wore a collared shirt, but no one could see any armor past his arm guard. The right hand wore a matching fingerless glove, but was not encased in any armor at all. Simply dressed in the long sleeves of the man's shirt. The shirt itself matched the dark tan of his leggings. It seemed to clash with the jewelry he wore, the gemstones and precious metals scintillated in the sunlight.

At his hip was a completely different pair of swords from the ones he wielded during his match with Go Gin. These were elegant, like works of art rather than blades meant for live training much less fighting and grueling combat. They were so thin, yet not rapiers. No one could quite make out why or how someone would craft such flimsy appearing weapons.

Cosmetically, they appeared to look like an extremely thin two edged straight blade with a weaving hilt design. They had longer hilts than rapiers and single hand sabers. Their blades were four feet in length and tapered sharply at the final six inches.

Relic Tier weapons known as [ _Elvish Dueling Blades_ ] would be perfect for this situation, or so Draconis and Lucia had agreed upon. If they wanted to learn elvish swordplay, then what better to teach with during the instruction? They dramatically raised the wielder's Dexterity and evasion numbers in addition to having the nasty surprise of bypassing a certain amount of armor defense based on the wielder's Dexterity against his opponent after being adjusted by the rating class of the armor they wore.

If the wielder of the weapons was wearing light or no armor at all and facing a heavy armored foe, then the wielder enjoyed a ridiculous thirty percent armor defense bypass bonus. Coupled with the critical rating on the swords as a base stat enhancement before customizing, the swords in PvP were considered busted for their Tier Rating. The balancing factor was that against equally armored foes and opponents with high Dexterity ratings, the weapon lost the majority of its bonuses.

Despite their length, they were quite light and with Draconis's Strength stat, he barely felt their weight at all. He would have to pay special attention to the speed he wielded them at, if he drew them at all.

He nodded to the gathered troops opened his mouth to speak.

"Emperor Jircniv. Soldiers of Baharuth. I am here today as per portion of the agreement between your Emperor and I to instruct you all on the rudimentary fundamentals of the swordplay I wield. The emphasis today shall be upon the elegant and lethal blade work of the elvish blade masters, in addition to the absolute basics of Avalonian swordsmanship."

There was open laughter by the soldiers at his words. Draconis merely smiled as he had expected such a reaction from the troops of a nation where elves as slaves were commonplace. If they had not seen him fight against Go Gin, Jircniv and the Imperial Knights might also have laughed. Lucia stood off the the side and shook her head in annoyance.

"Elves cannot wield steel! What hash have you been smoking?"

"Aye! When have elves done anything other than look pretty?"

Draconis gave Jircniv a look that clearly asked permission to call these two soldiers out. Intrigued and eager to see this self acclaimed elven swordplay, he nodded in agreement. The Dragon Ascendant nodded in thanks and walked slowly to the two men laughing at his proclamation.

"You two." The men gave turned to give him baleful looks until they realized that they had to look up at him. "You will do quite well. You think the elven swordplay is a joke? Let's see you prove it. Both of you against me."

Both men looked to their Emperor incredulously. Was this crazy man serious? Yet the look of expectation from Jircniv and the serious expressions of the Imperial Knights quelled any words the Earth Guard and Royal Guards present would have said. It was clear that the Emperor expected something of merit here. He was expecting something and they knew not what.

Draconis leaned down toward them with a sardonic grin, his eyes a solid cold teal coloration as he eyed both men like prey.

"We've a saying in Avalon for your hubris. Put your money where your mouth is."

He pulled a pouch with a crimson string holding it shut and jangled it before both men. The sounds of coins caught all of their ears.

"One hundred gold says you will have dust on your backsides before you land a blow on me two against one and one hand behind my back."

The men were dead silent. A hundred gold?! Draconis took the pouch and tossed it to the Imperial Knights. Nimble caught the coin purse and found it hard to not swallow his surprise. The pouch itself was silken and velvet. Opening the coin pouch, he made a swift count. There was indeed one hundred golden coins held within. Yet these coins seemed purer than anything he had handled before! Was this Avalonian gold?

Nodding in confirmation, the two men both glared at the man before them. The fire of proud men of the Emperor's personal forces burned and the prospect of earning easily over four months of wages in a single challenge two against one was too tempting. Never mind the pride of the Order in general.

"You better be ready to lose that gold."

Draconis walked back to the center of the grounds and drew a single blade. His left arm moved to a position behind his back as he brought the weapon up to rest parallel to the ground with his right arm and hand up and in front of his torso and facial area as he presented them with a side profile with the sword's tip pointed their direction.

"Well? I'm waiting."

The two soldiers marched forward as they drew steel. Both men growled as they began to approach him while drawing their swords. The first man moved to Draconis's right while his impromptu partner traversed to their opponent's left in a flanking maneuver.

 _Well, well now. Despite going for the taunt and the bait, they still retain enough sense to not blindly rush headlong. Perhaps their training is indeed above par._

Both of his assailants steadily approached before they attacked. The first man came across with a right to left slash that would catch him across the back while his partner went for a thrust. Draconis read them and surprised them all by stepping _into_ the thrust while spinning on his heel.

Lashing out with the elven weapon as he came around full circle, he brought the blade under the man's extended arm and caught the cross guard in the hilt area. Slashing to the right in a long arch, ears heard the ringing of steel upon steel as the weapon slid along the underside of the cross guard. The force and surprise from the move made the Baharuth soldier instinctively tighten his grip on his weapon.

Yet inertia was already in play and the man was stunned as he was simply dragged forward in an accelerating speed.

 _He's slinging me forward by my own weapon!_ Was the only thought that entered his mind before Draconis ended the slash with a flick of his wrist, letting the man's sword ring loudly as it was propelled along with its attached master straight toward his partner. Both men's eyes widened and the man ducked to avoid being impaled on his fellow man's blade. In doing so, he abandoned his own attack in panic. The two stumbled but did not fall to the ground.

The rest of the soldiers and knights gathered stood in sudden interest. What kind of sword technique was that? They saw it happen, yet it had been so quick that several blinked and eyes were rubbed in disbelief. Those that had managed to keep track of what happened frowned.

The slash the Scarlet Swordsman made was not directed at their brother in arms, but his weapon. By catching the underside of the hilt and letting the spinning force of his slash act like a fulcrum, he propelled their man's thrust toward his other attacker. The two men would have severely injured each other from stabbing and slashing each other if they had not had enough training and reflexes to realize what was happening and avoid each other.

Nimble and Leinas both frowned at the display by the two Earth Guard members. It was a single, elegant stroke by the Scarlet Swordsman, yet even though they understood the intent of the maneuver, the technique needed to perform it with such grace and speed was unnerving.

"You saw it, yes?"

Enec asked seriously. Baziwood nodded as he watched this display of swordplay. Draconis had not once moved his left arm from behind his back. What others did not see that they did was that as the two men stumbled into each other, the Knight of Avalon had already settled back into his stance.

"That stance is a good set up for a thrust or slash from left to right. If he had wanted to, he could have impaled the man from the back through the heart and then carried it on into his second opponent. Yet he remains stationary because this is not a fight to the death."

Leinas saw it another way and spoke her piece. "Or he could merely have maintained his spin and whipped the sword around to decapitate him from behind."

The four of them began to see the fundamentals of Draconis's claim of elven swordsmanship. Elegant parries and maneuvering followed by death strokes. Leinas and Nimble found themselves interested in this deadly display. Baziwood could see the advantage of learning even just the fundamentals, even if it clashed badly with his own style of combat. Enec personally found himself at a loss. It was unlike anything he had seen or heard of. A defense that turned into an offense without pause. Compared to his impregnable defense, this was altogether foreign to him.

Both Knights of the Earth Guard had recollected themselves and advanced on Draconis yet again. This time they approached from the front on either side. Each of them slashed or stabbed in sequence yet the Scarlet Swordsman's blade deflected and parried everything.

"Look closely, he's barely moving the sword in his hand."

The Imperial Knights all watched as Baziwood analyzed the technique on display. The man was utilizing his wrist to direct the blade of his weapon. Slashes were allowed to glide down the blade in the same arc as the slash before subtly twisting or flexing to deflect it at an angle that traveled away from his body. Upward swings would be the only time extreme movement from both wrist and arm would occur. The point of his blade would meet the incoming rising attack and the blade of his opponent would glide up it as he turned his own weapon into a lever and allowed inertia from his opponent to let the strike travel harmlessly upward and away.

Thrusts were met halfway down the length of his sword and slight movements of his arm left or right would divert the thrust into a path that did not target his torso or other body parts. Both men seemed to grow gradually more irritated the longer they could not seem to pressure this man into a panic. Normally two against one fights would see the two overcome and overwhelm, yet this man was like a serene pool amid the storm. His eyes seemed to stare into their own and read their thoughts.

With a roar, both men raised their blades at the same time and came down with a pair of savage falling chops. Draconis smirked and a spark flashed in his eyes. Already committed to their attacks, the two Earth Guardsmen realized this was exactly what the man had been waiting for them to do.

Stepping to his left, Draconis brought his blade down in a single handed sword stroke directly to his right side as their attacks fell through the air. The elvish weapon landed upon the back spines of their swords and his force, quicker than their own, forced them downward. The force of the jarring strike to their weapons made them keel forward and Draconis narrowed his eyes as he shifted his grip. The sword in his hand turned its flat to the skies and he brought the weapon up and forward to meet their falling necks.

Yet instead of slashing their throats and decapitating them as everyone feared would happen, he turned the flat again and slapped them square in the foreheads with the four foot long length of metal with enough force to slam them backwards and off their feet. The two men landed unceremoniously in the dirt on their backsides.

"Guh!" "Argh . . .!"

Draconis sheathed his weapon with no preamble as he turned back to the larger group present. As the two men slowly gathered their persons from the dirt, he spoke.

"This is elvish swordsmanship. Brute force will only work if you can overpower them so thoroughly that they've no choice but to retreat. The principle is simple. Expend little effort while making your opponent do the work for you. Strike when they over commit. Waste no energy with excess movement."

There was quite a lot of murmuring and questioning looks, but none of them could really say there were interested. Even though they understood the concept, learning a whole new way of fighting, much less one that required so much alacrity in analyzing and snap decision making was too much for a mere chance of reward.

At their soured expressions and continued doubt, Draconis spread his arms wide and walked around with bold steps as he looked each of them in their faces. His eyes shifted to silver and gold and white and pale green. He fairly snarled as he spoke, his voice carried across the air like a clarion horn.

"Is this not why you are here?" He glared at some of them outright. "Is this not why your are here?! The best the Baharuth Empire has to offer and you doubt and suspect another race's swordsmanship when it plainly, obviously sends your peers to the dirt? Can you not see the opportunity before you?! To learn and improve to better serve your nation and its people?"

Seeing the soldiers grumble and become annoyed with Draconis's words, Jircniv frowned and motioned to Baziwood. The man looked to the Bloody Emperor.

"If this is the only thing other than the gold he says that he would pay us in reparation for the Dragon Kingdom, then at the very least make it a spectacle to be remembered. All of you against him, but not to the death."

Baziwood raised his eyebrows in surprise, but not in disappointment. Personally, he wanted to witness and experience this elvish swordplay first hand.

"Yes, let's see how it fares against four people instead of two. Now that he's spoken of the principles surrounding it, at least we know something of what to expect. Come on you three!"

Nimble and Enec nodded and stepped forward. Leinas huffed in slight annoyance. Men . . .

Yet . . .

And yet she too wished to experience this for her own proof of this Scarlet Swordsman's worth. To see and feel first hand the worth of a Knight of this Queendom of Avalon. She also gave a firm shake of her head and stepped up to join them. The action was not lost on those present and the grounds went still.

Save for Draconis, who noticed the actions taken by the four Imperial Knights.

"Well then. Perhaps this will finally convince them . . ." He smirked a bit in humor.

This would be a sight to be remembered.

* * *

 **Review Responses**

 **Eventually there will be another Character Profile insert . . .**

 **Here we go everyone! First Chapter of the New Year 2019! Wow, has it been that long since I started this fic? I guess so . . . huh . . . time just flew by this year.**

* * *

 **rmarcano321:** Okay I guess?

 **Lin Faz:** Thank you so much for the compliment! :)

 **Akuma-Heika:** Yeah, Volume 13 and 14 while it had its moments, I was actually more engrossed and entertained with CZ Delta getting a ton of screen time.

To answer your question concerning [Silent Spells]. In Dungeons and Dragons, the Silent Spell modifier is certainly powerful, yet in Overlord, part of the YGGDRASIL mechanics was that magic casters did not need to declare there spells at all. The only reason that they did so was as a courtesy for other players so they knew to get out of the way or to prepare for incoming support or possible friendly fire. It's something that became so ingrained in the player base, that it was just natural to do so.

This makes SO much sense as to the reasons attacks get yelled out in this anime. I mean, in Dragon Ball it was scream attack name before launching. Or in Yu Yu Hakusho it was similar. Never mind games and other tropes. But in Overlord, it is a mechanic that is not done as a requirement, but as an in game world mechanic that is second nature to Players as a way of going about the game.

This renders the [Silent Spell] modifier moot. Merely cast whatever and never say anything. This is something that will happen in the story soon and it will stun New Worlders.

 **FanGuy59:** That does not really surprise me. The idea of the villain protagonist is an oxymoron in and of itself really. I think the only time I enjoyed something like that is actually from the DC comics, and I am far more of a Marvel fan than a DC fan by FAR. It was Joker: White Knight. It is actually pretty freaking incredible. I was blown away by the execution of it. It wasn't just a horrid Joker tribute and hating on Batman, but a truly fleshed out case of What If? It still stands to me at least, as one of the absolute most smashing comic series in the DC universe.

 **Guest #1:** Don't assume anything. All things have a purpose, even the Goats . . .

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** Anything getting kids involved tends to tug heartstrings. If they don't, then you need to examine yourself. I don't care who they are, but kids have a special kind of sanctity to them until they come of age.

BestDadDraconis? Oh boy . . . Hey Artorias? We need to talk about you and Draconis for a second about the script! What? What was that? Okay then . . . We'll be back when we get to that point.

 **Dimension Distorter:** I thank you from the depths of my heart for keeping up despite your dislike of the political byplay in the fic, which there is a lot of admittedly, but it's what happens when rulers of nations get involved. It's why I try to have character mental reactions and not just verbal or physical. It is the only way to keep it interesting. Because writing it sure can get boring . . . Thank gods for music to listen to while writing.

 **MadDan90:** Does this last one count as a cliffhanger? I don't think so at least.

 **UndeadLord22:** Draconis knows of someone who can and he himself can, but curses are always tricky and he won't just hand out cures. He himself knows all too well that people can be ungrateful for hand outs and be negatively influenced by just having things handed to them.

 **Awayuki:** Baaaah! Bah Bahhh! Goats. Just because they get warned does not mean that they heed it. You all will see in the future chapters.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** The monetary amount for Draconis is nothing to really be too concerned about, but to the people of the New World, it is astronomical for a single person to have that wealth in ONLY coin. Dungeons and Dragons states as a rough estimate . . . that 10 copper coins equals 1 silver and that 10 silver coins equals a single gold coin. 10 gold coins equals 1 platinum coin. A commoner working all day for his family makes between 3 silver and 7 copper A MONTH.

Assuming a year is 12 months. That's around 3 or maaaybe 4 gold a year. When a suit of full plate armor goes for around 900 gold . . . well, you do the math. This is a part of why full plate mail like Momon's is ridiculous to Adventurers. That Plate Mail cost of 900 is merely ordinary steel, NON MAGICAL. Adamantite is special and thus costs incredibly higher for non magical. Getting it enchanted? Basic magical armor adds no less than 1000 gold coins to the cost. SO YEAH . . . expensive as shit.

Nevermind magical WEAPONS . . . Rings, potions, accessories . . .

 **Argenis658:** Well here ya go!

 **PoseidonisPlayz:** That is true too. This particular Isekai series does turn that on its head a bit. Yet I can practically feel the negativity Kugane has for certain topics and issues at certain points and it just rubs me the wrong way. I mean, I am in no way not guiltless of this either, but . . . eh . . . I can see your statement's side of the coin very well. Thank you for pointing it out.

 **Doraemax:** Not that I can answer every review you have posted on The Exiled, but thank you first and foremost for reading and reviewing! The answer to your question about them asking Fluder how he knew Ainz will be done in the upcoming chapters.

 **Guest #2:** Thank you!

 **Lookiehere:** As a follower of Skallagrim on his tube vids. I am aware quite keenly of the Half Swording and Half Handing techniques among others. Trust me, someone will get deathstroked.

 **Generation Zero:** Thank you for reviewing again! Good to see you in the New Year. Hmmmm . . . Artorias meeting Jircniv? Heahahahahahahahaha! Read on sir. Read on . . .

 **SpaceMonkey777:** Wilco! Thanks for dropping in!


	34. Chapter 32: Instruction and Intrigue

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Notes and Disclaimer**

Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

* * *

 **Chapter 32: Instruction and Intrigue**

* * *

 **Re-Estize**

* * *

Lakyus of Blue Roses sat at her desk staring at the parchment with the remarkable painting of Artorias Pendragon, the Queen of Avalon. Not that she thought anything inherently ill of the obvious heteromorphic woman. She was not like those Sunlight Scripture fanatics she and her team had stopped from purging demi-humans that one time. Defending yourself against them was one thing, but actively hunting and killing them down to the children? The very idea of abhorrent to her.

The tales of her told by Rigrit of the Thirteen Heroes had captivated and chilled her in equal measure. Armies of hundreds of thousands? A giant crystal tower? Twelve Knights under her command that could fight legions all by themselves? A utopia for all? It seemed so far flung, yet wondrous and scary all at once! Even Rigrit herself had voice her original skepticism when the leader of the Thirteen Heroes had told them about the Queendom of Avalon and its ruler.

Personally, she wanted to know more. Professionally, she dreaded the encounter. When past legends and heroes had openly admitted to being weaker than this Queen of Knights, what did that portend exactly? Rigrit had told them to be very mindful of interactions with Roble until it was clear that confrontations between the two nations would not erupt into violence.

Rigrit herself stated that she would be traveling around to investigate other areas and see about this new Queendom. The old heroine stating that she had grown interested and hoped to speak with the people of Avalon at the very least to learn more about why they would show themselves now and not back then. Blue Roses had wished her well, though Evileye and the old woman traded jabs at each other instead.

Today she was preparing to go and meet Princess Renner for one of their usual meetings concerning the notorious band of organized criminals known in the underworld as Eight Fingers. As this was no war meeting, she was not outfitting herself with her armor and weapons. Tina would be accompanying her today to the meeting with the Golden Princess.

"Avalon and Artorias Pendragon, a dragon blooded Queen of Knights . . ."

Her mind wandered a bit and Tina came up behind her. The ninja simply stared at the painting with a barely noticeable frown on her face. If the things that Rigrit had told them several nights ago were even half true they did not want to rouse this ruler's ire. The fact that Rigrit herself was intrigued yet cautious and wary spoke volumes. Rolling up the painting, she slid the parchment into a waterproofed case and filed in away in an enchanted strongbox.

It was time to head out.

What neither of them noticed was the tan cloaked figure outside their window two rooftops over. The [ _Cloak of Infiltration_ ] blending her in perfectly with the world around her. Her cloak was not the standard [ _Cloak of Invisibility_ ] that all in her order possessed, but an advanced version. Normal, lower quality cloaks merely veiled you from visible detection from those around you, but her completely snuffed out her existence to the world around her. Even smell and noise were shrouded. It was also enhanced by the Tier V Illusion class spell [ _Greater, Invisibility_ ].

With this version, she could still attack and not have the invisibility drop from the aggressive action. Perfect for her job. She frowned heavily, her maple brown locks swayed at the motion.

"I am sorry Lord Mordred . . . But it seems I was right to follow my instinct concerning leaving Avalon to investigate things in the surrounding nations."

She held up a hand and five others with her, subordinates who were members of The Howling Wind of Avalon's intelligence section, stood from their perimeter points around her. It seemed like the reports given to them by their liege lady were correct. The people of this world were so underpowered that Avalon was now the quintessential juggernaut of the lands. They had yet to encounter anyone with the mere Tier III [ _See_ _Invisibility_ ]. It did not bode well for the majority of many of this New World.

During their fast travel here to Re-Estize, they had swiftly made use of queendom's accounting department to create a large amount of currency native to their new world, wearing down the coins to make them seem like they had been in cycle for a long time. The Queen herself had approved, but been disturbed by the sheer quality difference between YGGDRASIL currency and this world's monetary coin.

She herself had 420 gold total in mixed coinage on her person. Far more than enough for several days. Besides, they also carried their [ _Infinity Haversacks_ ] that carried over a month of supplies as other things needed to survive independent of a base for long bouts of time.

Making a circling gesture above her head and then pointed to her right with a knife edge thrust of her limb, they all moved out as a single unit. Each of them remained as far apart as safely possible as they bounded from rooftop to rooftop in long leaps and jumps. There feet were outfitted with [ _Boots of the Sabre Cat's Leap_ ], allowing them impossible jumps with little noise and little effort. It also softened landing considerably. Thus, they were undetected as they moved to another area of the capital of Re-Estize.

" _Captain Cathari, is it really okay to let that Lakyus woman go? She knows our queen's face."_

Cathari the Invisible Howl nodded even though she knew none of her squad could see it as they bounded about. Oh, they could all see each other just fine with [ _Contacts of True Sight_ ] but while moving as they were, it was better to keep your eyes on your destination. She replied via their private [ _Message_ ] link.

" _I do not believe her to be a threat to our Queen. If anything, that Rigrit woman last night put most of our concerns to rest. It seems like none of them are foolish enough to try anything aggressive against Avalon. We'll let this leader of Blue Roses be for now . . . all units hold!"_

She stopped on a rooftop and stared down at the figure walked down the road in a tuxedo of immaculate quality. Her danger sense told her that this man was an aberration in this New World. Something so much stronger than the natives that there was no way that he was not of YGGDRASIL. She pulled up her notes that had been given to her from their allies from The Lair under Draconis. It did not have too much to go on, but there was a list of notable persons. This man was one of them.

She was more than a hundred meters from him, but she could make out his features clearly.

 _Sebas Tian? So that's the man. Hmm . . . things just got potentially dangerous. Then again, our next plan of action was to investigate Eight Fingers. Such an organization nothing but toxic filth._

According to the information, Sebas Tian was a good man, but how did a good man serve an evil one? She pondered it for a moment before taking note of his presence and ordering her unit to continue on. She could think more about that later.

Little did she know that Sebas Tian turned to look in their general direction as they departed. His monk's senses and racial awareness had prompted him to take notice of the extremely powerful feeling that was in the area despite the woman's cloak. Energy emitted from the body . . . ki and chi could not be dampened by her cloak and he had felt her spirit even in passing. He had also noted the weaker, but still far more powerful than the New World natives auras as well.

Seeing as there had been no aggression directed his way and but rather, curiosity, he had not seen the need to exude a murderous aura towards them. He merely took note of them and continued on his way to pick up a new magic scroll.

* * *

 **Enroute to Port City Re-Lobell**

* * *

Rigrit made haste on horseback as she traveled southwest to Re-Lobell in order to charter a ship to the far west port city of Rimun in the Holy Roble Kingdom. The last thing she had expected was to see a hastily, but well done portrait of a legend that even the young leader of the Thirteen Heroes had hailed as even stronger than them all. Many of them . . . for many of them had been demi-humans and far more than just a mere thirteen. Many of them had passed it off as hero worship from the Thirteen Hero's leader's younger days. Yet now that she had seen the portrait so accurately depict the very description he had of the Queen of Avalon, she had to know the truth of the matter.

She knew of the anti-demi-human sentiments that Roble held. Even though it was for fairly decent reasons, she also knew from her time with the Thirteen Heroes, that not all demi-humans merely followed their predator instincts. If an entire nation of such powerful demi-humans and humans could exist in peace, then angering and provoking them was the last thing you wanted to do. They could end up being an exceedingly powerful influence on the lands around them.

She would have to bring this up with the Dragon Lord when she next saw him.

For now, she wanted to satisfy her own curiosity and just maybe, prevent Roble from getting themselves destroyed in the process. Sudden power vacuums were never good for anyone, even if they were not a direct citizen of the nation experiencing it.

Tales of the Knights under the Queen of Knights also echoed within her mind from memories long past.

A knight who was almost invincible during the peak hours of the day with the sun at its zenith . . . another with arrows that never failed to reach their target no matter the circumstances . . . another who could slay mages with ease . . . one who proved herself against countless one on one battles and was a master of pegasi! The tales seemed to become more and more fantastical. Never mind the mention of the master magic caster capable of the mythical magic!

She hoped the fools in the Holy Kingdom had not ruined things between them already . . .

With such thoughts in her heart, Rigrit pushed her horse hard. Hopefully . . . hopefully . . . it was not too late.

* * *

 **Tildeus**

* * *

Cecilia sat with a cup of tea across the table from a wolflike beastman female. This one had come to them with an angel from Chronos following her. There had been obvious signs of abuse and neglect. Her fur had been tangled and dirtied, she had smelled of filth and blood. Her tail had two different distinct kinks in it. Signs of broken sections. Her right eye had swelled shut and had been infected, blood and pus had caked the damaged eye.

Needless to say, her condition appalled Cecilia to no end. The villagers of Tildeus had nearly rioted when she had been allowed within their defenses to be treated and cared for. This female had remained unconscious when Terramist had attacked. Cecilia had been mildly surprised by a magic casting beastman, but looking back on it, she probably should have prepared for that.

Not that her own magics had not proven to be all the stronger. Originally she had intended to take Terramist alive for questioning, but when the beastman had begun to slay his own to make them fight a losing battle, she saw red. Her fury had peaked and she unleashed Tier IX spell: [ _Rexcaliber_ ], the veridian blades of wind turning the bastard to kibble.

The surviving beastmen had either fled or surrendered. Those that had given up had mostly been beastmen in a similar state that this wolflike woman was. Beaten and abused by those in power over them. Oppressed when it came down to it. It was pitiable.

"Uh . . . Alpha Cecilia . . . may I ask something?" Her voice, they had been pleasantly surprised by. Her voice was rather enjoyable and was like a tenor tune. She could articulate her words rather well for not having cheeks.

Cecilia nodded once as she sipped her drink. Taking that as permission, the feminine wolf beastman rubbed her hands together as she spoke.

"Why have you healed me? Why do you treat me so well? Am I not your enemy?"

Setting down her tea cup in its saucer with a soft clack. She closed her eyes as she spoke. Her emerald tresses swayed slightly in the light breeze that blew between them.

"I healed you because it was the right thing to do. I treat you well because it is proper to do so. You arrived in delirium and on the verge of death from abuse from your own kindred. Such a thing is not right. You departed that camp because you had enough yes?"

A single nod answered her question and so she forged onward.

"If I was to kill you out of hand in such a horrid state then I would never be able to show my face before my liege ever again."

The she-wolf beastman tilted her head to the side. This powerful Alpha female of the humans was beneath another? So was she this powerful yet under someone even _stronger_? Such a thought made her shiver through her fur.

When she had awoken, she had started in a panic. She was washed and clean. Her fur had never felt so soft and free of burs and dirt. Her eye was even healed! Her tail was no longer broken and she could actually wag it without pain. She had never gone on hunts, only receiving the scraps of the feasts that those stronger than her let her get. On more than one occasion she had to forage for other forms of sustenance. Berries from bushes and rabbits foolish enough to get caught in the open. Yet it was so hard to hunt the wildlife, they were purer in regards to animal instincts and so hard to track alone.

When she had discovered that these human defenders had taken her in, she was sure that they would kill her. Yet she had not been bound. She had been fed. Fed food that she had never tasted before. Meats so much tastier than human flesh and though she found it somewhat difficult to chew and swallow, large chunks of vegetables. Even though she was more carnivore than omnivore, she did find the cooked plants to her liking. Even the drink had been made tolerable for her after what she assumed was her watcher had shown her how to use a "straw" to compensate for her lack of cheeks.

It was around that time that she then felt it. The murderous aura of the humans of the village. Yet for all of their anger, her watcher did not allow them close. He had merely sent another like him away and shortly afterward, she found herself in front of this emerald haired woman who she could smell the power that radiated off of her.

"You are not an Alpha?" She asked in slight confusion. "You have so much strength! How are you not an Alpha? Are these . . . these humans not your pack?"

Cecilia had to mentally applaud this one from taking the conscious effort to not call humans "food". It was obvious that this female beastman knew quite clearly what her situation was.

"I can understand your confusion Silver Tail. Due to my position I could be an Alpha by your standards. Yet even I follow another."

Silver Tail's namesake stilled and stiffened in response to her dread even as she shakily asked her question.

"You have . . . you have a greater one? Like in our lands?" Cecilia paused in her musing.

This was what she was looking for! Information about the Beastmen Kingdoms structuring. Even just a primitive outline of their inner workings could be a massive tactical advantage.

"So you have a grander hierarchy. Tell me about it. It would help me explain to you our own."

Silver Tail could not help to notice the slight edge Cecilia's eyes took, but she did not get a predatory or malicious feeling form them. Nodding, she began to explain what she knew. The sounds of notes being scribbled down and a furious pace were the only things that she heard from Cecilia as she spoke. Occasionally the woman would ask a question of her own and Silver Tail could only answer a few of them. Part of her realized that this information could spell the doom of any and all other beastmen foolish enough to raise arms against this woman and her pack, but after suffering so much at the hands of her superiors, she did not really care anymore.

* * *

 **Arwintar**

* * *

The four Imperial Knights of the Empire approached and the Earth Guard and Royal Knights all grew quiet. All four of them at once? None of them had been there to see the match between Go Gin and this Scarlet Swordsman of Avalon, but they wore adamantite armor while he wore nothing but clothing with a simple gauntlet on his left.

"Oho? All four of you at once? Out to prove something Emperor Jircniv?"

The Bloody Emperor smiled with a bit of humor. "Perhaps Knight of Avalon."

Draconis gave him an equally humored smirk in return. "To me? Or to your troops?"

Jircniv knew what he was getting at and for the most part, he actually had to agree with the crimson haired man before him. Seeing his troops this put off by a sword style that clearly had trumped two of their own with absolute ease was off putting. If this would better the Empire, he was all for it. That was after all, his ultimate goal. To make the Empire stand the test of time itself. To do that, he had even adopted many of the Golden Princess Renner's policies despite his loathing of her. He had seen results very quickly. As such, his logical mind could not deny that if this elven swordsmanship was truly that effective, then who was he to hold back in incorporating it as a part of the training regime?

"Perhaps a bit of both?"

Draconis head rolled back as genuine laughter escaped his lips. As he returned his gaze at them, his smile was half humored, half predatory. The Imperial Knights noticed his canines were longer than they should be.

"What the?" Baziwood frowned as he noticed the detail. Nimble also frowned, but they had seen stranger with certain gifted individuals and the rumors that abounded with other heresay people. The man had eyes like a rainbow, obviously something like this was far more tame by comparison at this point. Enec pondered on what it could mean, but said nothing. Leinas grit her teeth. She was sure of it now. He was not human, at least not as the strict definition at least.

"Well now? I am waiting. You said you wished to learn, no better way than first hand."

The four took glances at each other as the man before them spread his arms wide as both invitation and challenge. Bringing their weapons to bear, the nodded as they closed in.

As they did so, the man reset his stance to the same one as previously shown. Side profile shown to them with the sword pointed at them at his midriff. However, his left hand was held high and opposite of his sword arm. Leinas and Nimble both recognized the new variation from their time as nobles.

 _A fencing stance? No, could be be adding what he called Avalonian swordsmanship to this?_

"No reason to not test the waters. Let's have a go!" Baziwood roared as he rushed headlong. Nimble and Leinas moved to Baziwood's right side as Enec brought up the rear.

* * *

 **Draconis Vs Imperial Knights**

 **Music of Awesome**

 **Valkyrie Profile 2: Silmeria OST = A Motion of Finishing Blow**

 **Play . . . ?**

* * *

Baziwood let loose a sweeping, left to right slash that came in at Draconis's back. As the slash closed in, Leinas and Nimble closed in with rising and falling strikes respectively. Enec was ready to intercede against any counterattacks made against his comrades.

To everyone's stunned disbelief, the man promptly swung his own blade in a circular arc beginning at his back, catching Baziwood's attack and forcing it to travel over him with his movement. The action forced Baziwood to skid by as he fought to keep himself from overshooting too far. The elven dueling blade continued its movement, guided by its master's hand, it rose in its continued circular pattern. Catching Leinas's rising slash and forcing it upward faster and into Nimble's falling strike.

Both Imperial Knights grunted in astonishment. Not at the act, but the smoothness and grace in which he had done it. Yet, as they both recovered from the imbalance, no follow up came for either of them. Enec sputtered in alarm as the moment the two Imperial Knight's swords had clashed against one another, Draconis immediately turned his attention to him. In a flash, the sword had set itself and a thrust was unleashed. Hardening his defenses, he thought to merely let the shield withstand the blow, but something inside his soul told him that would be suicide.

"[ _Impregnable Fortress_ ]!"

He glowed and the thrust was rebuffed with a resounding clash. Draconis's eyes widened in surprise before shifting out of the way of Enec's attempt at a shield bash. The four Knights took better stock of the situation. Draconis was glancing over his weapon with a curious air to him. He was surprised by the look on his face. How though? Surely he had encountered that Martial Art before?

"Hahaha! Interesting! A defensive art granting a single instance of perfect invincibility or something close to it. Though I wonder how many more times you can make use of it . . . everything has a limit after all."

A very noticeable grin of anticipation made its way across his face. Enec swallowed nervously.

 _He gets rebuffed by my martial art and gets eager?_

The man waited for them to attack again and the group proceeded with a bit more caution this time around. Stead of throwing everything they had into their swings or stabs and prods at his defenses, they made quick, better controlled slashes. Baziwood was still the most aggressive of them and while his attempts were not as full force as the one previously attempted, he still swung with greater might that his peers.

Leinas began to focus more on thrusts and covering her fellow knights openings with the swift piercing point of her blade. Nimble was focusing on irregular attacks, aiming at the legs and arms rather than the torso or head, hoping to catch Draconis with the unusual targeting.

Peshmel grunted as he was turned aside from his shoulder to hip slash before immediately making use of [ _Flow Acceleration_ ] to turn a full one-eighty and swing his sword with the added force from left to right. As he did so, Nimble released an arcing glint of steel from right to left. The two swords would cut Draconis in an "x" fashion. Rising with an arcing slash, Draconis caught the two swords and drove them up . . . over and back down into the dirt as his footwork spun him 180 degrees before spinning away in a full counter clockwise circular turn and locking swords with Leinas.

She grunted as her weapon sparked with the stress of their blade lock. He smiled softly.

"You all work well together. Good." He turned as he grabbed her sword hand and twisted as he relinquished the lock. The momentum forced her to twist her body or have her wrist broken. Knowing that by doing so, she gave her back to him, she dropped her sword and caught it with her off hand. Lifting it over her shoulder, she dropped the blade over her back right as he attacked with a pommel smash to her back. The blade absorbed the impact, but the force still drover her forward.

Letting go of her sword as she staggered forward, she spun about face before grabbing her weapon out of the air with her dominant hand. They noticed that they were all between Draconis and Enec. Was he worried after being rebuffed by his defensive Martial Art? The four exchanged glances before rushing Draconis in single file with Leinas at the lead. She lashed out at him with a rising flash of her blade that traversed from her lower right to her upper left. As she expected, he forced her blade to pass him as Nimble instantly filled the gap and slashed the opposite way from lower left to upper right.

This attack was knocked aside by the gauntlet he wore. As they both were rebuffed, they spun around, Nimble circled to bring his sword to the man's back as she spun to slash at his exposed right side. As they were doing this, Baziwood roared a challenge as he brought his sword down in a chopping cleave. The sword became wreathed in a pair of brilliant slashes of light. "[ _Two Fold Slash of Light_ ]!"

Surprise and a flash of excitement passed across Draconis's face. The man grinned and twisted himself like a coiled snake. His hand went to the second sword at his side and as he uncoiled he was like a twister. His voice was barely heard, but they did hear his words.

"[ _Blade of Disruption_ ], [ _Circular Parry_ ]."

The [ _Two Fold Slash of Light_ ] broke into shards as Draconis's left blade smashed through the Martial Art of Baziwood utterly stunning the audience as his primary sword in his right followed the twin blade and bit into the falling blade, forcing him aside. The force and velocity in which he turned made him intercept Leinas's blade as his right sword shielded him from Nimble's attack with his weapon behind his back over his shoulder. Rotating again as he lifted his sword over his shoulder, forcing Nimble's sword to rise again as Draconis ducked down and turned to face the young man with an incoming left handed backstroke to his torso.

Realizing full well that his body was fully exposed by this action, made a snap decision that most would never make in this situation. He stepped into the attack, reducing the momentum the attack could build before it could hit him. Even tough this worked the force of the blow as still more than he expected. It knocked the wind from his lungs as he grabbed at his opponents arm. Gripping for all he was worth, he winced at the sheer power he could feel fighting his grip.

 _This is insane! What strength this man has despite his fluidity!_

Leinas and Baziwood rushed Draconis with the opportunity Nimble was providing them. Yet Draconis surprised them in turn by dragging Nimble toward Enec and smashing the youth into the bracing Imperial Knight's shields. Draconis let go of both his swords, allowing them to land in the dirt. The young blond gasped as he was body checked into the shields of his peer. Not having expected this, Enec released his guard, not wanting to harm his fellow Knight. This proved to be his undoing as Draconis reached in between the opening in his defense and grabbed the man by the lower plate as he released Nimble from his arm.

Nimble hit the dirt coughing as Draconis lifted Enec bodily into the air and slammed him down on top of the younger Knight. Shields and all came crashing down in a brutal body slam. Both men let loose cries of pain as they collided. Nimble groaned . . . alive but beaten.

Baziwood couldn't help but laugh a little at the spectacle. He honestly had not expected this Knight of Avalon use things he would in a street brawl. Quite frankly, he found this man greatly entertaining.

"I think I understand this Knight of Avalon. Elegance and pragmatism. A balance between the two dependent on the situation." He shuddered a bit and Leinas took notice. "Leinas, we cannot beat him. It's impossible. I can't even see the measure of his power."

He spoke with his voice low as the man took up his swords again. He seemed to patiently allow them to speak. Perhaps he was allowing them to formulate a new plan?

"He did not block my [ _Two Fold Slash of Light_ ], he shattered it before it could land! I've never heard of such a thing . . . a Martial Art like that can stop anything we have. We're students and greenhorns compared to the skill he's displaying. The Earth Guard and Royal Knights might only have a few who are realizing how strong he really is, but most of them won't until it's too late.

She nodded in agreement. She had never heard or seen such a skill in her life. Such a power was truly a trump card like no other! Though she wondered if there where certain Martial Arts it could not stop.

Before they could make any other moves or speak any further, Emperor Jircniv stood and addressed all present.

"I have seen enough! Martial Lord, I thank you for the demonstration."

Draconis turned to the Emperor and nodded respectfully before kneeling to Enec and Nimble.

The shield bearer rolled gingerly off of Nimble and the young blond knight groaned in pain. He could feel a few of his ribs were broken or bruised. Draconis held a hand over him and sighed.

"Hold still young man. [ _Cure Moderate Wounds_ ]." A glowing green aura enveloped him and those gathered stood stunned. Healing magic! High level healing magic at that!

Lucia shrugged. _Casting Tier IV [_ Cure Moderate Wounds _] like that. Not that it puts a damper on his Magic Point reserves. But it's still beyond most casters, especially since it is Divine Magic, not Arcane or Spirit Magic. Then again, our Dragon Blood allows us to break that conformity to specific schools or types._

Nimble gasped as he could feel his wounds mend and he felt revitalized!

"Apologies for the rough treatment, but your grapple leaves me little choice in responses when the fight is not to the death."

Nimble nodded as he accepted the apology. It made some measure of sense, but the force in which he had been slammed into Enec's shields made him feel like the man was holding back despite the power that had been utilized.

"I understand. Thank you Scarlet Swordsman. I know you admitted to knowing magic, but healing spells?"

Draconis assisted him in standing as he spoke. "I am a protector first and foremost. My shield and sword are to defend, not oppress. Much of the magic I do know is toward that end."

Nimble nodded as he thought about those words.

The Emperor called his knights over as Draconis walked back over to Lucia.

This had been a very interesting event

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **Capital City**

* * *

She watched these newcomers to their city with a mixture of both awe and apprehension. Her brother and her watched them set up camp outside the city walls and begin to prepare defenses. They were beautiful to look at. Their clothing and armor was immaculate and they all moved with such professionalism and polish that it seemed like something out of a fairy tale. The men and women wore white melding into blue as it traveled down their clothing. Their armor shined like silver, and they all had brunette or white hair. Some of them had hair that was mixed. Brunette with white streaks numbered a few of them.

Her mother had feared that they would demand food and housing, yet the opposite had occurred. They themselves were brought food and repairs were being made to homes and other establishments. Healing was being provided for those who could not pay for it at the temples. Respectable and revered Father Yoland had thrown his own full support of this army that had appeared as well. It had taken many of them by surprise.

None of the soldiers demanded anything in compensation. They had worked with smiles and empathy. A few of them even mended clothing and when clothing was beyond repair, they had woven and crafted fresh sets! Nothing fancy, but warm in the cold. The officers from what she had been able to tell, wore helms with a pretty feather in them. They were a bit more set apart from these "regulars" of this army, but they were none the less kind in their own way.

Something that they called "Soup Kitchens" had been set up to provide the hungry with meals during the midday and evening. Her brother had expected thin broth with a little bit of vegetables and little meat, yet what they had received was hearty and rich. They had not eaten so well with fresh bread to go with the meals in so long they had nearly forgotten.

Probably the most telling was the lessons and classes they offered to teach them all how to defend themselves. They had been told that it was strictly volunteer only. Those people that did take them up on the offer had been screened by leading officers for either physical or magical aptitude. The fact that they had a way to determine who could learn magic was amazing! She did not know where this band of soldiers and magic casters had come from, but she was amazed by it. The banners that she had seen all had different individual sigils, but they all remained under the same mainstay. A brilliant blue banner with a golden dragon wrapping itself around a sword and shield with wings made of swords!

She ran through the recently cleaned streets . . . her feet padded with a set of simple, but comfortable sandals that one of the female soldiers had given to her the day before. It was a wonderful feeling, being able to run through the streets and not cut her feet upon the jagged, broken roads. As she turned the corner, she ran into someone and nearly fell back onto her bum if it had not been for a set of strong hands keeping her steady.

"Woah there. Easy now. Where's the fire little one?"

The deep rumbling voice intimidated her for a moment as she looked up to see a man with sharp facial features and sharp eyes of crimson. His gray hair was a bit on the messy side. Dark crimson armor like that of a dragon of legend made her shiver. Had she run headlong into this goliath of a man? Was he angry with her? She could not help but tear up in fear. The man appeared uneasy and a bit uncomfortable as she whimpered and tears began to fall from her eyes.

"Oh, Commander Samael, you're scaring the poor girl." A woman's voice, soft and rich drew her attention despite her tears. The woman knelt down in front of her and patted her clothes down in a soothing gesture. "There now. It is quite alright. You did no harm. But you must be more careful. It's good to enjoy your youth, but be mindful on the streets okay dear?"

The woman was beautiful, with long dark hair and gentle eyes that appeared to carry a heavy burden despite the comfort they exuded. She nodded quietly, her tears drying up a bit.

"I – I'm sorry Lady. Sir."

The woman laughed softly at her shyness and nodded in acceptance of her apology. "Thank you little one. Samael?"

The man sighed and knelt beside her. His facial expression softened as he smiled awkwardly. Something about the uncomfortable expression on his face put her at ease and she could not help but giggle a little at him.

"I mean no harm to you. I am sorry if I frightened you little one. Be careful running around."

They both stood as the little girl nodded. As they walked off, her brother ran up to her from an alleyway. Several other children grouped up on them both.

"Lucky! That was the Queen!"

"Yeah, that was Queen Draudillon!"

"When I grow up, I'm going to be one of her knights!" The boy who shouted that got jabbed in the ribs by another boy his age.

"What? No you're not! I am!"

The two boys began to quarrel and fight for a headlock, but she did not pay them any attention. Just from that moment, she knew that the Queen was different from what they had heard from others. She could tell that Draudillon did care for them. What Queen would bother dusting off the clothes of a common girl? To walk the streets with only a single man escorting her during these troubled times despite the help they were receiving from their newest benefactor?

She could only watch as Draudillon walked away from them and toward one of the encampments of their savior's forces. Deep down inside, she knew what she wanted to do with her life now. She wanted to serve the queen in whatever capacity she could.

* * *

 **Alright! I realize my dear readers that this chapter is shorter than what I normally do, but I felt it good to end it hear before getting into the next portion of the story.**

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses Time!**

 **Wacko12:** No Draconis has not yet learned of Esdeath's fate. This segment of the story flows parrallel with the Lizardman Heroes Arc. I stated so when we came back to Draconis's POV and at the beginning of the Lizardman Heroes Arc itself. I assure you, he WILL find out and it WILL cause things to happen.

 **Lew89:** Thank you for the compliment. I can understand all too well when you write yourself into a bigger plot than originally thought or done. Some of my favorite fics on the site suffered from that, though the ones that did finish were amazing.

 **The Violet Imagination:** Rest assured, Draconis's magical side WILL come out to play. He does have his Magic Fencer class for a reason! XD. That being said, YES, he does indeed have a Draconic style of swordsmanship.

 **Dmatz1994:** Hey there! Thank you for dropping in! I fully understand many of my readers are fans of Avalon a bit more than Draconis. Lol. I assure you, I do have something like that in the works.

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** I hope that this chapter satisfied some of that desire! Elves have always been a bit mystical and magical. Yet I've always seen them as fierce melee fighters when need be.

 **MadDan90:** Hopefully you got to read this one BEFORE going to sleep. Lolz.

 **Guest 1:** That would be hilarious, but Demiurge/Jaldoboath will encounter something a bit . . . different. Hehah!

 **Estaban Chamy:** Did not play For Honor. Though I did like the look of it.

 **Dimension Distorter:** I'm glad that the previous chapter was more to your liking. Hopefully all this set up will pay off for when the real movers and shakers of this conflict between the Dragon Kingdom and Beastmen Kingdoms makes their appearances. . . . Oops. . . . Mild Spoiler . . .

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** I'm glad you liked it. Yeah, sometimes you have little choice but to skip around a bit to lay down all the ground work.

 **UndeadLord22:** The Dragonsong War will play a significant role in The Exiled. So expect more details from it!

 **Vincetmcm:** The Empire kind of come off as bullies to me in the Light Novels, but I do get where they come from.

 **ApridefulReader:** I am happy to know that I am able to surprise the readers expectations and show that I am indeed willing to harm and challenge my creations rather than just let them be invincible juggernauts.

 **Guest 2:** Thank you!

 **PossessedHunter:** Oh, you will see Draconis more in down time so to speak. He isn't all business all the time.

 **Generation Zero:** While Sting and Glamdring may not make an appearance in this fic, I do draw a lot of inspiration from Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and others for references and other high fantasy ideas. Thanks for dropping a line!

* * *

 **Okay everyone! That's all for tonight. No other big news for the moment. The next chapter will be out in February! Take care all!**

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	35. Intermission I: Prepping for Adventure

**Overlord: The Exiled**

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 **Disclaimer and Note**

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Please note that the events ongoing here occur in sync with The Lizard Men Heroes Arc I revised. I understand through talking on forums and reading the Light Novels again that the Men of the Kingdom Arc happens after the Lizard Man Arc, but this is a slight twist on the timeline that only affects things in regard to timing.

To assuage confusion.

The warning to the Lizard Men by Ainz occurs 8 Days before Cocytus's first attack on them.

Six Days before the attack, Cocytus gets in touch with Draconis to call in his "Favor" from the Dragon Ascendant. During this time, Draconis was meeting with Jircniv El Nix. He was taking a break to receive a report from Esdeath when Cocytus [ _Message_ ]'ed him. He sent Esdeath to Cocytus as a way of paying that "Favor".

The previous chapter and chapters leading up to Draconis finding out about what happened to Esdeath are what happens during those six days of the Lizard Men Heroes Arc.

Now, on with the chapter! This is the preface for the next chapter as I know that the following chapter will be a doozy of a read.

All that being said, this chapter (and the next one) occurs a day after the spar between the Imperial Knights and Draconis. This is two days before the final battle with the Lizardmen against Cocytus and then his fight with Esdeath.

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 **Intermission II: Prepping for Adventure**

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Foresight found themselves at the Singing Apple Pavilion with Miranda the Mad. The older woman was scribbling something into her tome, the quill scratching to and fro in a rhythmic pattern that reminded Arche of her own notes from the days at the Magic Academy. Irma, in an odd turnabout, was not trying to get herself sloshed. Then again, it was almost time for midday meal. Hekkeran was currently at the counter trying to drum up some level of work. Roberdyck was with him trying to find a level of work worth their time and that would have the greatest amount of net profit.

Miranda had joined them about an hour ago, but had not stated her reasons for joining them today. Letting curiosity finally get the better of her, Arche looked at Miranda and voiced her concerns.

"Lady Miranda, why are you here? Don't you have issues or lessons at the Academy to take care of? You are one of it's Deans."

Miranda stopped in her writing and set her quill aside before addressing the younger magic caster. Her eyes twinkled with humor, but they were sharp and pitted Arche with a soft warning to watch her words.

"I remember that there was a time where you would not speak so sharply to an elder, much less a senior of your field of expertise young Arche. I see that Worker jobs have hardened you a decent amount. No doubt the issues with your family also have hardened you to a degree. Yet understand that no matter how experienced you become, there will always be something out there that will surprise you. I am no exception. That . . . dear Arche is why I am here."

Realizing her mistake, Arche apologized softly and nodded. "I'm sorry Lady Miranda. You helped me greatly with that outstanding debt payment, but I feel that once I have broken even with the debtors, I must take my sisters and leave mother and father. Though I do feel a bit bad for mother, I find myself with little remorse for my foolish father."

Miranda could not help but feel a bit of sympathy for her junior's situation. She did not ask for the stripping of their noble titles by the Emperor, but it was true that her father was a wastrel and too vainglorious to see the reasons behind the denouncement of their standing. Arche was now a more driven girl and wanted to escape the ties that held her down to a dark fate if she could not redeem their debts.

The dark entity Miranda's Talent had revealed to her had shaken her to her core. Yet a subtle spark of hope had ignited among the darkness, and she clearly saw this Draconis as the source of that hope. It was odd though, that she saw a kind of loose thread tying the darkness and the light together, but if it meant that Arche had a better chance at survival, then she was not afraid to try to push the situation to a better end.

This Draconis to her was an enigma. He was clearly a source of goodness, but something dark also pulsed within him. Something ancient and primal. She had oft heard of ancient powers being neither good nor evil, but neutral. Yet there had been no denying that when she met the man for the first time, something ancient hovered over him like a shroud. Something that did not care either way for the fates of people so long as it was left be.

That was what she had seen when Lucia had asked if he was possessed by a second nature or being. It was not that kind of situation, but more like he was ever being watched, observed and yet either he knew and did not care, or did not know despite the fount of power that he was. If it was the latter and not the former, she dreaded what would happen if he and whatever that presence had been were to clash. Knowing that Lucia was a dragoness was one thing, and obviously Draconis was probably also a dragon, but the aura that lay over him that she could feel with her Talent honestly scared her to no end.

"Young Arche, I feel that you should stay true to those feelings for your sisters and the responsibility you harbor towards them. Do not let that responsibility blind you to the dangers of desperation however. Go into things with a clear mind and objective."

Arche gave her an inquisitive expression that prodded her to elaborate. Miranda sighed and after she glanced over her tome to ensure that the ink was dry and safe for her to close the large book, she did so. She then gave her younger friend a motherly, yet stern gaze to tell her just how serious she was.

"I know well how hunting for work as a Worker is hard and that you must compete with your parents's delusional spending, but do not let it drive you to the point of being blinded by the need for gold to pay your debts so badly that you wind up even worse off."

"What are you speaking of Lady Miranda? What are you not telling me?" She squinted her eyes at the woman. There was obviously something that she had seen otherwise she would not be here giving her these warnings, as oblique as they were. Did they have to do with her bringing the man Draconis into this? "I do not enjoy being left in the dark Lady Miranda. I was Paradyne's pupil for a time, as odd as it is to say that."

"If I told you it would defeat the purpose of learning it yourself. Even if I did not care about that aspect of this, I doubt you would believe me. I myself have a hard time believing it, yet I must. Young Arche, have you ever not thought that knowing too much can be harmful?"

Imina gave the older human woman an odd look before setting her mug down. It was not alcohol this time, but strong tea mixed with juice. The violet haired half elf could not comprehend what she was saying, and the cryptic words were beginning to fray her nerves.

"Be plain Miranda. No offense, but the riddles are annoying. How are we to trust you if you won't come out and say it?"

Miranda gave the half elf a mildly peeved look before sighing and shaking her head as she raised her hands in a sign of defeat.

"A powerful entity has arisen from seemingly nothing in my visions of late. This entity is shrouded in darkness and will be the source of your end should you allow blind greed influence you. Even if it is to help speed along young Arche's goals. Her goal is a good one, but the powerful have little care for such things."

Imina seemed to begin to see where the woman was going with this and gave her a hard look.

"Now see here dean," she uttered as she pointed at her with her mug of drink, a drop or two spilled from the rim onto the table. "You might have gone out on an excursion every now and again, but we put ourselves on the line every time we head out. We aren't like the Adventurers who get vetted information, we head out practically blind. Arche's ability has helped us immensely."

Miranda was not impressed.

"I understand that Imina of Foresight. However, for you group's moniker you are not putting such foresight into action. What will you do when you encounter something that not only you cannot beat, but you cannot run from either? I understand that there must be risk to match the reward, but there are some jobs that are too good to be true because they are just that. Too good for your own good."

Arche actually did understand what Miranda was trying to warn them about. She tugged on Imina's tunic to get her fellow Worker to calm down. The half elf woman looked to her with a measure of surprise but sat when Arche gave her a look that told her that it was not worth getting emotional over. As she took her seat, Hekkeran and Roberdyck returned from trying to hunt down a job or two.

Noticing the awkwardly tense mood at the table, Hekkeran coughed lightly as he set down the papers that outlined their next job. Arche took one look at the paperwork and paled considerably. Miranda shook her head at Hekkeran and Roberdyck. Imina glanced at the words upon the parchments and frowned a bit, but did not find herself terribly surprised.

The paperwork was a job written out to any Worker group that would take it. It was from Count Femel, and it read thusly:

 _To any and all Workers who wish to be justly rewarded._

 _I, Count Femel do dispatch this missive to attain information of any and all types concerning the newest Martial Lord. Any who may uncover any dealings in the Grand Arena that would expose fraud in the match between the two shall be rewarded handsomely._

 _Any who can disprove of his claims to a nation with the claim of being hailed as Avalon shall also reap a generous reward. His words carry demi-human sentimentality and are a threat to human decency._

 _Rewards are to be discussed purely upon the value and credibility of information reported._

 _Count Femel._

"Why did you take this?!" Arche practically slammed her hands upon the table in a mix of shock and fright. The man had honored his word to her concerning the match with Go Gin. They had been present for the negotiations of the conditions with Osk. They knew full well that the match had not be fixed in Draconis's favor as far as they had known.

Hekkeran and Roberdyck glanced at each other for a moment before answering her.

"Well, we already know that his match against Go Gin was legitimate. I don't believe he would be surprised by the political moves of the nobility either. He seems to be well versed in that area. Something about the man does not strike me as a person who would be angry about questions about his homeland."

Imina gave her budding romantic interest a flat stare that made him scratch the back of his head nervously as he noticed her disbelief. Roberdyck shrugged.

"Come now. I think we would benefit from learning about the man. We are not trying to recruit him, just learn more about him."

Arche glared at Roberdyck. "We can do that without taking on a job that screams ulterior motive."

"What screams ulterior motive?"

The group at the table stiffened and rigidly turned to see Draconis standing behind them all. A curious expression painted his facial features as Lucia poked her had out form behind me with a small wave and mischievous expression.

The truth was, they had not exactly been quiet in their discussion and the two had heard a fair portion of the proceedings before they walked in.

Foresight as a whole broke out in a cold sweat as they both continued to give them expectant looks. Miranda took a closer look at them both and noticed the subtle, humored smirks at the corners of their mouths.

 _Gods above, they both heard them talking about the job. Might as well help these young whippersnappers a little bit._

"Lucia and Draconis. I thought that the Emperor wished to have you teach his knights some pointers on your swordstyle?"

Draconis nodded with a small, amused grin. "The the Emperor did indeed and for the past day I have been giving them pointers. Yet lessons for today are through. I showed them some of the rudimentary basics and left it to his Imperial Knights to carry on the lessons. Of their cadre, Nimble and Leinas are particularly quick on the uptake. Baziwood Peshmel sees the merits but is mostly self taught and his personal style does not favor it. Enec . . . well, he is having a hard time getting used to a proactive defense over a passive one with his shields . . ."

The group stared at him like a different person. He gave instructions to the strongest knights of the Empire? Miranda sputtered a bit before laughing heartily. The action made them look back at her like she had finally, truly lost her mind and gone mad as her moniker.

"Hahahhah haah. That's rich. The young emperor tried to recruit you didn't he?"

At this point the two outsiders took up seats at the table as well. Draconis shook his head, surprising them. "I believe he had the intention of doing so, but I nipped that idea in the bud before talks truly began. I owe my loyalty to friends and family, those I offer the mantle of protection to, and to my own word of honor. I do not make promises I will not keep."

The group seemed a bit stunned that he would refuse Jircniv of all people, yet if they were to take him at his word, that was the very thing he had done. Imina looked to Draconis with a bit more respect now. Few people would say no to an offer from a ruler of any sort if the reward was right. Due to her harsh treatment as a half elf, she distrusted many people who could simply be bought out.

For all Hekkeran's love of the earnings he brought in, he did not hesitate to turn down jobs that did not agree with him. He particularly hated those that tried to intimidate him or mistreat others on principle. It was one of the reasons she joined Foresight, much less had feelings for him. Roberdyck disagreed with the charge for providing healing to those less fortunate. Which is why he became a Worker. His magic had been invaluable. Then there was Arche and her prodigious magic ability for one so young.

To Imina, the man at their table named Draconis Brightblade was an oddity among oddities. The man was obviously of noble background. The aura about him, the way he carried himself . . . well, most of the time . . . and his obvious intellect told him there was no way he was of base born stock. Yet his mindset was not like the stuck up nobles and human supremacists. He had not even batted an eye at her presence. There had been none of the usual questioning or condescension. No lewd, lustful looks over her form or any of that.

Now that she thought on it, neither had the female companion of his, Lucia.

 _Just who the hells are these two?_ She wondered to herself.

Roberdyck had some similar thoughts going through his mind. The woman . . . Lucia, did not radiate an aura of goodness like Draconis did, but it was clear that he respected her as a peer. It was that aura of goodness that he could feel from the man that made Roberdyck feel like there was far more to this man than being an outsider helping their beleaguered southern neighbors in the Dragon Kingdom. He himself had little doubt that this man could probably cast some kind of Divine spells of faith as he could, but to do so and still be able to fight with a blade as he did in the match against Go Gin was something else entirely. Yet despite his gut feeling that the crimson haired man could cast spells as he claimed, he could see no indications of a holy symbol or other religious medium among his possessions.

While a medium through which to cast was helpful and many times served as an amplifier of sorts for some casters, there was no such thing on his person. Surely his swords were not the medium were they?! Then again, there were holy swordsmen out there. Cerabrate of Crystal Tear and Lakyus Alvein Dale Aindra of Blue Rose came to his mind. Yet Draconis had spoken disdainfully about Cerabrate and openly scorned the man. Perhaps there was something else that they did not know that marred the image that word of mouth told?

"So you wish to learn more about me?"

The members of Foresight looked to him a bit startled. Lucia was seen shaking her head tiredly as the new Martial Lord before them nodded to the sheaf of parchment upon which their newest job was writ. Hekkeran carefully observed the man before him for a moment. There seemed to be no malice or resentment about the job he obviously now knew they had. Multi-hued eyes held expectancy and oddly enough, a measure of mirth to them.

Miranda laughed a bit more before settling down. Hekkeran was a bit unnerved by the encouraging look she was giving them all.

"Go on you youngsters. If the man is offering you should not spurn his good graces."

Hekkeran frowned at the older woman before addressing Draconis.

"I apologize for any affront taking this job may cause you." Hekkeran forced himself to meet the Martial Lord's eyes head on. The man's brows raised a bit in surprise and minute smirk crossed his features as he nodded slowly. Swallowing his own spit to wet his throat he fought to keep speaking without having his voice crack. All the sheer pressure of holding eye contact with this master of the sword made his throat parched. What a massive presence! "I hold sole responsibility for our undertaking of this job."

A firm nod answered his words before his lips let go of the answer they dreaded.

"Good man. Due to the circumstances . . . of which I believe neither party truly expected nor may have instinctively desired . . ." All eyes shifted to Miranda who scoffed a bit. "I find it acceptable for you all to learn a bit about me, but not here in the capital. Today we take ourselves a bit of an excursion outside the walls. We will be back before the end of tomorrow."

His words made them all look to each other in confusion. What did he mean by "excursion"? Lucia also gave her compatriot a strange look.

"Draconis . . . What are you getting at?" He did not look at her as he answered.

"I took my own job." he placed a sheet of parchment on the table's center. "An outlying village has been having trouble with a 'terror' according to them. None of the Adventurer's Guild teams would take it, nor would most of the local Worker groups. I propose forming a combined group for this job. I am willing to give you all in Foresight the reward. In turn you may learn about me during that time."

"When did you get this?" Lucia asked incredulously. The man turned to her and smiled deviously.

"When you left to do some shopping at the market, I stopped into the Guild house and looked over the board. I saw the job and when I was denied due to not being an adventurer, I made a magical copy of it for my own information. Lucia broke out into laughter at his action.

"You audacious bastard. Do you realize how much trouble that can cause you?"

Draconis shocked them by scoffing openly. His voice dripped with disdain. "They are not true adventurers. True adventurers strike out into the great unknown full well knowing that they could never be heard from again. These adventurers are glorified monster slayers, anyone with enough luck, backbone, skill, and power can do that. They take pampered, pre-scouted jobs. If anything, this group of Workers before us are more adventurers than they are."

Lucia hummed in thought at his words and found that she had to agree with him to an extent. Foresight did not know what to say. Such words sounded like praise, but they found his contempt for the Adventurers surprising for a man of his obvious stature.

The group looked down at the job and scanned it thoroughly. It seemed like a simple job at first glance. Investigate the problem plaguing an outlying town. Yet the town's description of the problem was one of missing villagers. Missing persons cases tended to not end well nor pay well, yet the reward for this was far out of bounds with what was described for the job. It was slated for Gold Rank Adventurers.

"1000 Gold? For a job like this?" Draconis nodded.

"It sounds suspicious does it not?"

Arche gave Imina a meaningful look and her friend nodded in agreement as they both remembered Miranda's warning from earlier. When 3 Gold coins could feed a normal family for a whole month, just 100 Gold was saying something for commoners. Yet they were Workers. Gear was expensive to find in the quality needed to ensure your survival much less getting it enchanted to suit your needs. A whole thousand? From the size of the village they would be fortunate enough to scour together 100.

"You say we can take all one thousand of it?" Draconis nodded firmly. They looked into his eyes and only found firm honesty within the swirling colors of his eyes.

"I do. If what our third party here has seen is true, then we would benefit in better knowing one another. I do not mind others learning about me along the way so long as it betrays nothing of my Queen or my peers."

Hekkeran snorted and crossed his arms over his chest as he leaned back in his chair.

"Yet you taught the Empire's men the fundamentals of your people's swordsmanship."

Draconis's expression turned to something akin to a dark humor bordering manic. Hekkeran stopped leaning back and swallowed his spit as chills ran down his spine. Roberdyck grit his teeth as he paled a bit. The aura of goodness was still around him, so what was this dangerous pressure?! Imina's elven side screamed at her to flee the man, but she knew that she'd only make it if they let her. Arche recognized this feeling from Miranda long ago during one of her classes. The aura itself was not good nor evil, just pure . . . raw, power.

"When did I ever say that I taught them _Avalonian_ swordsmanship Mr. Termite? I taught them _Elvish_ sword techniques that are a part of, but not fully Avalonian. We take beneficial methodologies and techniques into account for our fighting style, but the Avalonian techniques are all their own. The bladework I displayed during my fight with Go Gin were Elvish techniques melded with my personal style. Avalonian swordsmanship is _far_ more aggressive."

The group gasped as the pressure dissipated from the table and his nearly manic grin was replaced with a more comforting, neutral expression.

"I have not given Emperor Jircniv any means at all of fighting against Avalon should the two nations ever meet. Now, shall you be taking me up on the offer of an excursion?"

He motioned to the paper before the four of them and they all stared long and hard at the offending parchment. As they each personally deliberated about the pros and cons of such a move, he set a stack of coins upon the parchment.

"As a token of good will. Nothing worthwhile is ever free. Take this as an incentive and do not worry about it if you decide to not join me. I will not miss the amount. Good day Foresight. If you wish to find me, I will be at the East Gates waiting your arrival. I leave at the midday bell."

He and Lucia walked out of the Shinning Apple Pavilion and Foresight stared at the stack of coins upon the parchment.

"What kind of currency?!" The group could not believe their eyes. Arche carefully, nervously plucked a single gold coin from the stack and her blue eyes widened like saucers.

"What kind of coin?! It's gold, but I've never seen such elegant coinage."

Imina and the others took a single coin off of the stack to look over as well. Upon the face was the image of a maiden with the a sun and moon above her forehead. The stylized letters spelled Y-G-G-D-R-A-S-I-L. At the bottom curvature of the Gold was the print of "Since 2126".

"What in the world?" Imina's words echoed all of their thoughts.

Hekkeran turned the coin over to its back and frowned in concern. Was this a tree with a serpent surrounding it around the circumference of the coin? It also had the spelled out Y-G-G-D-R-A-S-I-L. The coins, every single one of them were perfect circles, even thicknesses, and made all the coins they had ever touched before seem like like a pauper in quality. The identical designs on each and every coins was impossible. Was this coinage from Avalon? If so, his gear suddenly was not so far fetched. These coins were easily worth two times . . . no . . . FIVE times that of their gold.

They counted the stack and all the members of Foresight slumped into their chairs. 50 coins in total. Did he realize the superior quality of his coinage . . . or did he not deal with their currency to know any better? Did the man even care? Lucia and Draconis had both confessed earlier in their very first meeting to being foreigners. At least Draconis had never been to the Empire.

He had effectively left them with 250 gold coins in the form of a mere fifty coins. Miranda however, stared at the stack with a bit of awe and even fear. Arche too, set the coin she had snatched up to look at back on the table with a bit of trepidation.

"They're all enchanted . . . He carries enchanted gold."

The rest of them gaped at her. Hekkeran and Roberdyck took out a pair of knives and tried to scratch the gold coins in their hands to no effect. Imina refused to let that deter her and took the coin to the dart board in the tavern. As they were the only ones in the building at the moment, she made sure the item was secure on the board before stepping back ten feet and drawing her bow and arrow. The arrow shined and she released her shot. The ranged Martial Art [ _Piercing Arrow_ ] lanced out like a bolt from heaven and struck the coin dead on.

The arrow shattered from the impact.

Wooden splinters flew everywhere and the arrow head of steel flattened halfway before falling away from the coin that remained utterly unaffected. She looked back at her team with a bit of fright. What kind of money was this? What was this man and what was Avalon?

Arche by this point looked at Miranda the Mad and then to her hands in her lap.

"Lady Miranda . . . I am sorry. I doubted your words." Miranda nodded in both acceptance of her apology and understanding of what the younger woman must have been feeling. Arche Eeb Rile Furt then turned to her fellow Workers. "I think we should take him up on the offer."

Hekkeran Termite frowned as he set the coin back on the table close to the stack of perfectly round, enchanted coins. He sighed, but set a cold set of eyes on Arche and she in turn, winced and stared back at the table.

"I mean no offense Arche, but the debt your parents have incurred gives you little say in what we take on." The professional finality of his words and tone brooked no arguments from the others of the Worker team.

The young blond teen nodded sadly, but in acceptance. "I understand. As the one in the group in debt I can fully agree to my vote being null and void."

The professionalism of the group reasserted itself with the hard switch to work. Hekkeran turned to get Roberdyck and Imina's opinions on the job they had been offered to team up on.

"At this point, I'd wager than it would be the easiest thousand gold we've ever gained. Yet I am worried about why he would be so interested in this proposition. Does he know something we don't?"

Imina's worry was reflected in Roberdyck's as well. "I agree. Someone so powerful that he can defeat Go Gin in single combat without using magic is incredible. He must be in the realm of heroes, yet no one has heard of him until now. He carries this currency that is nothing like our own. Yet despite my concerns, I can feel a presence of goodness from the man. Surely something so blatant to my senses as a cleric is not a lie. He is no doubt an eccentric, but I doubt he means to intentionally lead us to harm."

Their blond haired leader snapped his fingers as he remembered something and he turned his attention to Miranda. The older woman looked to him patiently.

"You mentioned that he was the person you saw that would 'save us from a dark fate'." The woman nodded at his words. "Is this that fate?"

She shook her head negatively as she answered his question.

"No, this is not it. I have had no visions pertaining to this outing that the Scarlet Swordsman proposes to you, but I do know that it would probably help your chances. I suggest taking advantage of it." She pointed at Roberdyck and they all frowned a bit as she called their healer out. "You, young man. Trust your faith and the goodness you feel from him. A truly good person at heart would not leave those he knows and grows fond of to die. I strongly advise making a friend of him, if not a mutual acquaintance."

The four Workers looked at one another and nodded at her words.

"Alright Miranda the Mad. We get it already. Quite pushing us. Geez, that redhead wasn't kidding about us all being manipulated by you. If anything I feel a kinship in that at the very least." Imina groused as she suddenly felt the urge to either drink heavily or drag Hekkeran up to a bedroom to take out her stress in a more . . . provocative manner. Miranda at least had enough peace of mind to nod in acceptance of her part in things.

The others nodded in agreement with Imina.

"Fine. We'll join him on this excursion of his. It is still his job though, so if things get out of hand, it's all on him."

Everyone in Foresight nodded and got up from the table. They still had around two hours before the midday bell. So it was time to grab what provision they could before meeting up.

* * *

 **East Gate of Arwintar.**

* * *

Lucia was grilling Draconis over the coinage left on the table for Foresight. Draconis had an expression of disbelief on his face.

"What?! How was I supposed to know. I've not dealt with any of the money since I arrived . . . are you serious?"

Lucia jabbed him in the ribs and he winced at the action more out of reflex than actual pain.

"Yes, you dolt. You just forked over coinage that outclasses everything this continent has." She whispered feverishly to him. "YGGDRASIL gold is so far above this realm's gold that even low on funds, we are richer than kingdoms combined. Wait . . . don't tell me you were going to pay Jircniv the gold in what coins you have in your hoard?!"

Draconis suddenly felt very . . . veeeery foolish.

"I need to make an emergency adjustment . . . I'll be back."

Walking over to an alleyway, he entered into it before using [ _Greater, Teleportation_ ] to make a quick visit back to The Lair. Lucia groaned in annoyance and clear exasperation.

"Draconis, how the hell did you not think of the currency difference . . . waaaait . . . when he paid for the meal back at the Wyvern Rider territory . . . ah crap. Well, I guess they'll make use of it without making a fuse. They never were plucky about that kind of thing."

She could only assume that he was about to make his alchemists back at his base extremely peeved.

* * *

 **Arwintar Markets**

* * *

Foresight were all gathering supplies for the job. As a single unanimous decision, they all agreed to not try and spend any of the coins that they had received directly from Draconis. Such superlative quality mint was guaranteed to draw unwanted attention. Especially as Workers rather than Adventurers. Potions were the most expensive things on their list, but Hekkeran went along with the extra spending in lieu of the reward at the end of this jaunt they agreed on.

Roberdyck mentioned that the recent string of missing people cases matched older tales from what he had heard during his time with the church formally. They had contained ominous details of the demonic or fiendish. As such, they were purchasing Holy Water flasks as well. The cleric tested each of them with his magic for fraud and more than once, they managed to force a few merchants to compensate them with free or discounted flasks when they were caught trying to sell simple flasks of well water as "Holy Water".

Damn it was good to have a dedicated healer!

One or two of the merchants they interacted with had shown plain disdain for Imina due to her half blooded heritage and Hekkeran glared them down from that stance. Nevermind his attraction to her, but that was something that a fair amount of both Workers _and_ Adventurers agreed on. Disdain for merchants swindling and screwing you over, regardless of the reasons.

Having garnered what effective supplies they could, they still had an hour before midday bell. They gathered together outside the Pavilion for one final discussion.

"So, we're really doing this?" Imina huffed as she shifted her weight from foot to foot. She gave Hekkeran a bit of a stink eye. Despite that, he nodded firmly.

"We'll learn more about him and hopefully get paid for two jobs for one."

Arche nodded slowly, but spoke her mind.

"I know I have no say in this due to my circumstances, but I feel like we should heed Lady Miranda's warning. This just seems to good for words."

Each of them became thoughtful as they listened to Arche's reasoning and concern. Roberdyck patted the young mage on the shoulder.

"That is true, but remember what she also said when our leader asked her if this job was the dark fate that she had foreseen."

Arche thought back on it and did remember that Hekkeran had asked Miranda about that. The elder woman _did_ say that this was not it and that it could help them in the future. In what way, she did not know, but it did give her some measure of reassurance.

"I do remember Roberdyck. Thank you. I guess i am more off balance than I believed myself to be."

Taking one last count of their supplies, they came to a hard consensus and departed in the direction of the East Gate. Unbeknownst to them, a group of figures shadowed them from afar.

Underneath their cloaks of drab gray lay an Adventurer's Medal of Adamantite around each of their necks. On the back side of each one was the symbol of the Argland Council State.

"I still find it hard to believe the Council's reports."

"Silence, Arene. We were told yesterday by Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord himself that we were to keep close eyes on this Scarlet Swordsman. What better way than through those he finds interests in? Lay low, we don't know what he's capable of."

The group of Adamantites nodded as a single unit before fading out of sight via their [ _Cloaks of Invisibility_ ]. The leader of their group frowned. He had caught a glimpse of the man as he left the Shining Apple Pavilion and he immediately realized that the tales of the Baharuth emissary were not exaggerations. There was an aura of power around him that he only ever saw when dealing with the Dragon Lords. Yet he did not wish to jump to conclusions yet.

Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord had been most generous in getting them to the outskirts of Arwintar last night via the Tier VIII ritual [ _Greater Mass, Teleportation_ ]. It was beyond humbling to be the subject of a mythical tier spell! It only secured his belief that the Dragon Lord Council was not to be trifled with.

* * *

 **Somewhere Deep within The Argland Council State**

* * *

Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord reclined upon a veritable mountain of gold and gemstones. His crimson eyes remained fixated upon the massive, eighty foot diameter sphere of crystal that acted as his view of the world around him whenever he wished to scry. This was his method of keeping tabs on the world while not causing a stir wherever he went.

Closing down the magical sphere, he snorted, a strong gust of wind blew from his nostrils and shunted coins away form him. He had hired the team to watch and observe. He would get a report from them in due time. He was merely ensuring that they had the correct target from their briefing. With this new Advent and the coming of new blood to the New World from what he had observed in the past, he was intrigued as to what he could discover next. He scooped up a handful of coins from his pile and eyed them closely. Sure, it was a mixture of gold, silver, and copper, but the real object of his sight lay in the smattering of perfectly round, YGGDRASIL coins.

The past was yet again coming out to play. What would fun would he watch this time around?

"Give me a show Scarlet Swordsman of Avalon. Cure me of this boring existence. Ha. Hahahahahaa!"

His laughter echoed throughout his chamber and his guards shivered at the glee they could feel from his roaring laughter.

* * *

 **Another bit of a short chapter. As stated at the beginning, this is a prep chapter for the next.**

 **Now, on to the Reader Review Responses.**

* * *

 **Abrain:** I assure you I will be.

 **Wacko12:** Don't worry about that, Remedios will be revisited.

 **The Violet Imagination:** I assure you, his dragon form will be made known. He just hasn't had the demand for such overwhelming power to be brought forth.

 **17konbro:** It is true that there are a lot of characters. The majority of which aren't even being mentioned. Every member of Avalon's core group of Knights of the Round has an NPC they made. Most of them merely get call outs. Not all characters get screen time like the primary characters.

I keeping with introducing new protagonists so to speak, they have to have characters to oppose them as well. In regards to not introducing new NPC "out of the blue". They appear as they are needed in accordance to my outline. I have a large quantity of notes and outlining plots and an overall arching story to tell including the order in which they occur.

I write as I am able around my job and family time, so while it may appear to some as "out of the blue" I assure you, if we all labeled such appearances of new characters as such, then ALL characters are "out of the blue" so to speak. There stories will be expanded and elaborated on at their time. While they may not be "perfect timing" at times, the do serve my overall purpose.

This is a massive undertaking considering a lot of what I am covering are in areas not even revealed or perhaps even thought out yet by Kugane Maruyama.

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** Well it IS established that Players of YGGDRASIL _cannot_ learn Martial Arts, but it makes sense in return that New Worlders cannot learn Weapon Skills from YGGDRASIL. It also stems that due to the way that fighters Weapon Skills work, that they are intrinsically superior to Martial Arts.

Martial Arts of the New World as Ainz puts it, are: "Magic Spells for fighters." so to speak, they have limited uses, and drain a person mentally and physically. Weapon Skills from MMORPG's do not have costs, but cooldowns. Either on a "Universal Cooldown" or an "Off Universal Cooldown".

Those of you readers who are MMORPG players would understand this concept. As such, Weapon Skills are "infinite in use" but tied to a timer. Ergo, Players are incredibly strong due to the lack of a "cost" so to speak.

This is also where Ainz as a spellcaster suffers. There are no MP restoring potions in YGGDRASIL, so once you were out of MP, you had to wait 6 HOURS to restore it all. So sure . . . old bonehead can blast the crap out of you, but after he runs out of MP? If you can actually threaten him? He's rather screwed.

Anyway, thank you for popping in again!

 **Guest 1:** Neither Draconis or Artorias will take kindly to the Massacre at Katze Plains, but you all will see. A lot of readers are asking me about the Splat Fest and whether or not it will even happen.

You all will see in due time.

 **MadDan90:** Yes, the little girl's Point of View was just that, though she may appear much, MUCH later in the fic. Sorry about the release of chapters timing. Evening is more often when I finish up chapters due to work. Most of our fellow fic writers would understand this. XD

 **Omegadramon2:** Oh yes. The reactions of Renner's "True Face" will be entertaining to say the least.

 **Dimension Distorter:** I hope my note at the beginning of this chapter helped straighten out that confusion. Then again, I am taking a biiit of an artistic license with this timing.

 **Doraemax:** Admittedly, yes, I did. Artistic license aside, Type/Moon and Ufotable did some great artwork.

 **Guest 2:** Thank you kindly.

 **Generation Zero:** Fleshing out the New Worlders is important to me. Squeezing them in at the right times is the hard part. Some of them were very well fleshed out, but others were just kind of shown and then forgotten. Thank you for continuing to review!

* * *

 **Apologies again for a rather short chapter compared to what I normally write. This was a bit of a "side" prep chapter for the New Worlders to show you all from their views instead.**

 **Have a great February, as hard as it may be to realize we are already done with January of 2019. Yeesh,**


	36. Chapter 33: Village Problem

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Disclaimer and Author Notes**

Here we are again. I do hope that those reading this chapter enjoy it.

Please note everyone. I did want to get this chapter out sooner . . . yet one thing occurred.

 **GOD EATER 3.**

'Nuff Said.

If you are a God Eater fan, then you know where we stand on this . . .

 **To avoid potential confusion for any readers who skipped the Intermission II chapter before this. Go Back and Read it. It prefaces everything at the beginning of this chapter.**

 **Sorry for any confusion.**

Enjoy the chapter!

* * *

 **Chapter 33: Village Problem**

* * *

The group of Foresight arrived at the East Gate of Arwintar to find Lucia and Draconis waiting for them as promised. Oddly enough, the crimson haired knight seemed a bit pale and unnerved while Lucia held a dark grin of mirth. Deciding as a group to not step on that trapped panel, they kept their silence and curiosity as to the reason to themselves.

Lucia greeted them instead of Draconis, who was muttering something under his breath while holding what looked like a chalk tablet with a tonne of numbers scrawled upon it. What caught Arche's eye about it was how with swipes of his fingers, the numbers would move and shift or disappear completely and present a different equation altogether. She vaguely caught a few of his mumbled words as he absently nodded when Lucia told them they were departing.

"So the precious metal ratio to crude impurities leads to lowered intrinsic coin value. Judging from the overall value of our currency to that of the Empire and other nations in the surrounding areas . . . oh how could I have made such a grievous error . . . Todd really let me have it when I told him and the others to change a portion of our coinage . . ."

Draconis let a cringe and pained whimper escape his throat. Lucia shrugged smugly, but those of Foresight glanced back and forth at each other in concern and paranoia. Whatever made a man like that whimper . . . they did not want to face whatever that had been.

Cringing at the expression of absolute self depreciation, Arche could not help but feel a bit amused at the sight of bags under his eyes. He had appeared so much more energetic merely hours before hand. What happened?

* * *

 **Earlier . . .**

 **The Lair . . .**

* * *

Draconis appeared in the halls of The Lair via [ _Greater, Teleportation_ ]. Briskly striding down the myriad halls and tunnels of his sanctuary, he nodded and waved to those of his home's inhabitants he came across but did not stop to chat. Down three floors of the labyrinth like sanctuary, he entered into the Item and Equipment Creation section of the stronghold. He normally did not approach this section unless he truly had a specific item in mind.

Throwing open the doors to the chambers with a plaque reading, "Alchemy Labs", he glanced about for a brief moment, looking for his chief Alchemist, Schwarzer Todd. His assistants acknowledged the superior of their administrator before going back to their works and research. A small, spherical automaton rolled up to him and bobbled back and forth in greeting before releasing a magical projection of a man in a white lab coat smattered with chemical stains.

"Yes Lord Brightblade? How may we be of assistance today? It is rare to see you personally grace us with your presence."

Draconis nodded as he continued to look about. "Yes indeed. Is Todd here or helping his peers in the Dragon Kingdom?"

"The master is currently having lunch with Commander Samael and the Queen of the Dragon Kingdom."

"I see. Thank you."

The image of a man the orb projected bowed before deactivating and trundled away. A stray spray of some kind of experiment splashed over it and it shrieked before fizzling out and smoking for a second before popping and going to pieces. The alchemist responsible gasped and knelt to pick up the now broken spherical messenger.

"Oh dear. I did not think that the [ _Displacer Oil_ ] was quite THAT caustic . . . to think it could melt through adamantite that fast . . . oh dear."

Draconis did recognize that substance. The lore for [ _Displacer Oil_ ] was that the Level 70 acidic saliva of a [ _Displacer Beast_ ] could melt through Adamantite, but not through Prismatic Ores, or anything of Level 75 valued ore or higher. Fortunately, none of his equipment was under level 75 anymore. He had a few lower level pieces as a part of a nostalgic collection, but not useable.

Activating [ _Message_ ], he thought of Todd and the mage alchemist answered immediately.

" _Yes Lord Brightblade?"_

"Todd, I am at the labs. I need to speak with you posthaste. It is of utmost importance. I know you are enjoying a respite, but it is urgent."

" _Not a problem Sire. I will be there momentarily."_

Draconis cringed a bit at the "Sire" part. Though he was Artorias's husband – thus technically making him King Consort – he openly denied any claim to any throne.

Todd, true to his word, appeared in the center of the labs with a glass of what looked like fruit infused tea. The Lair had a strict rule: No alcohol while on the job. Nevermind that the liquor within the storage units contained a few brews that could literally kill anyone of lesser fortitude . . . damn those dwarven brewers!

That was a wholly _different_ form of item creation . . .

Todd gave a bow with his drink held aloft. Draconis could smell the sweet herbal leaf he was burning in his long pipe. Said pipe was quickly snuffed out due to the risk of embers ignited some poor unfortunate researcher's experiment, or worse, detonating it.

Murmurs of "Welcome back" and "Good day professor" echoed softly across the chambers.

"Indeed everyone. Please continue as you were." He turned to Draconis with a frown. "What was urgent Sire? I believed you to be parlaying with the Baharuth Empire to the north for additional support."

Draconis half sighed, half groaned as he nodded in affirmation. "Indeed I was Todd. And I still am. However, I seem to have made a bit of a . . . grand oversight."

Todd gave his liege lord a flat look of disbelief. Though he knew better than some of his fellow peers that their leader was not at all perfect, that did not mean he was downright careless. Bracing himself, he motioned for his liege to continue.

"Todd, have you handled any of this New World's currency? Have any of our own done so?"

Todd thought long and hard. Circling about in place as he ran his mind over any and all logistics that he had been placed in charge of.

"No Sire. I have not, nor has anyone else. Your orders and tenants were to not demand payment, nor coerce the people. We have not done so. All provisions used have been our own and we have taken no payments in return. A few of the citizenry have offered meals, but no currency."

Draconis let a harsh breath go out of his nostrils. The action made Todd grit his teeth on one side of his jaw. The Dragon Ascendant only did that in times of personal frustration over something he did.

"Sire? What is going on?"

Draconis reached into a pocket and withdrew a few gold, silver, and copper pieces that Lucia had let him take with him from her purse. The coins were rough, bent, dirtied, and worn. The engravings and molds were misshapen and primitive. Not only that but the gold piece was even smaller than the YGGDRASIL currency.

"I made a foolish promise. The Emperor of the Baharuth Empire has promised one of his knight orders so long as I pay the tribute long missed by Queen Draudillon. When I asked him how badly in debt her nation was, I agreed to his price without hesitation, nor bartering. I had planned to pay utilizing my own wealth, but . . ." He nodded harshly at the coins in his palm.

Todd immediately recognized the issue. These coins were crude, nothing like YGGDRASIL coinage. The quality difference was staggering, and Todd winced at the implications. At the same time, an odd sense of irritation also filled his chest.

"And pray tell how much does the Kingdom owe the Empire?"

Draconis groaned and shook his head. His voice was hardly heard, as it was barely a mumble. Todd frowned and leaned forward to try to hear better.

"Sire . . . how . . . much did they owe?"

The silent tension in the room was only interrupted by the clicking and clinking of beakers, flasks, and implements coupled with the burbling and bubbling of liquids.

"Eighty thousand gold."

Todd gave his liege a flat stare. His voice had also gone monotone.

"Eighty thousand and you just agreed . . . Her Majesty Artorias would rake you over coals."

Draconis shuddered at the thought. Artorias would indeed.

"Don't . . . don't remind me Todd." The Grand Alchemist leaned to the side as he eyeballed Draconis with a maddening smile of juuuuust slightly unhinged nature.

"Sire . . . do not tell me you called upon my division to produce this tribute within a limited time frame."

Draconis grimaced and set his jaw as he braced for Todd's reaction. Having written and memorized Todd's personality and tendencies . . . he was not looking forward to the backlash. His words were spoken true, but through clenched teeth.

"A day and a half."

A veritable miasma of ill intent hovered around Todd and seemed to engulf everyone present, including Draconis. The craftsmen and alchemists all froze and warily glanced their direction as spells of protection and barriers began erecting themselves around their projects.

Draconis huffed in defeat. Through the miasma, he could see Todd with blank eyes and a twisted clown grin, but nothing else . . . one of the man's hands was upheld with a flame of black fire held in the palm.

 _Here it comes . . . three . . . two . . . one . . ._

The explosion rocked the upper floors of The Lair and the members of the Clearwater Scripture who were beginning to learn about the history of place they were now . . . "guests" of . . . panicked as they glanced around, fearing something coming to get them for doing something else wrong.

From its place, The Bunny stood up on its hind quarters and sniffed the air. Its whiskers twitched as long ears swiveled back and forth to listen for any orders or sounds of distress. Faintly, it could hear a groan from their liege, but since there was no combat notice, it went back to munching on the greens on its plate.

A smoking scorch mark and a coughing Draconis later, Todd growled at his liege in annoyance. As chief alchemist and the primary logistical headmaster of The Lair, suddenly having to produce . . . _lesser_. . . quality coinage from the wealth of the stronghold chaffed his pride to no end. Nevermind the added complication of doing so in less than forty-eight hours.

Draconis, immune as he was to fire damage as a part of dragon blood, was still coated in soot from head to toe. He had chosen to take the brunt of Todd's spell as a kind of penance and symbol of remorse for such an overlook. Now, looking like a charcoal sculpture, he was rather glad he was immune to fire. A good portion of his mind knew that normally, he would be covered in burns and in absolute agony. Now he imagined that he looked rather comedic to those around them given the circumstances.

Akame and Kurome rose from his shadow with slight frowns at Todd as they began dusting Draconis off like a piece of furniture with cleaning feathers and warm, moist towels. As they worked, Draconis sighed and gave Todd an apologetic look. The mage still half glared at him with fists resting on his waist.

"I know what I ask of you is inconsiderate and a very serious oversight on my part Todd, but for the sake of those we are aiding, it needs to be done."

Todd took the currency clenched in his liege's fist into his own hands and practically growled at the offensive, slipshod minted coins.

"Sire, the copper coins are brass lined with a veneer of copper! Surely you cannot propose that we do the same rough shod workmanship?"

Draconis kept his eyes shut as Akame stood on tip toes to clean his face with a towel.

"No." He paused in his answer so Akame could finish up before he opened his eyes. "I do not. Merely gold for the sake of transportation. I leave the organization of the coinage and the containers to you. Just nothing overblown. Well crafted chests with sturdy, mercantile locks will suffice."

Todd reluctantly nodded. "To think that even a pocket portion of your hard earned wealth would be reduced to such pitiable quality . . . part of me dies this day."

Draconis hung his head in acknowledgment. "I understand Todd. Please, just get it done in time."

Todd nodded firmly. Despite whatever gripes he had about this job in general, the job would be done with time to spare and in the right quantity.

"I shall Sire. However, I must insist you learn the specifics of this New World's economy from what I have gleaned from Queen Draudillon."

Todd presented a scribe's chalk tablet. A magic item that acted like a touch pad tablet from Earth. Draconis took the item in hand with a bit of apprehension. Sliding his fingers over the opening text that appeared, he felt his gut drop at the table of contents provided.

 _Four hundred eighty-seven pages?! I'm in hell aren't I?_

Draconis looked at Todd with an utterly flat expression.

"I get it already Todd, you are displeased with me . . . I'll read it."

Todd pinched his nose in frustration at the new task on such short notice.

"See to it that you do Sire. As our leader, it would behoove you to understand all the nuances to better lead us. Worry not about the money, we will have it done posthaste."

A knot or two popped up in Draconis's mindscape at the slight jab, but he merely nodded in acceptance.

 _Dammit all he's right . . ._

Nodding heavily, Draconis bid farewell and teleported out and back to Arwintar.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

 **Current . . .**

* * *

Draconis and Lucia rode at the head of their group. Foresight followed close behind in the horse drawn cart they had rented out. The cart was open and had plenty of room for the small Worker group. They noticed that the Martial Lord had put away his tablet, muttering something like, "Don't read and drive." Whatever the hells that meant. He pinched his nose with a wince and shook himself before proceeding to take in the surroundings as they traveled.

Both riders were wearing the same armor they first meet Foresight in, the armored coat tails of Draconis's equipment jangled lightly on either side of the horse he rode. Arche decided this was the best time as ever to ask him a few things since they would not arrive at their destination for a while.

"Draconis."

The man looked her direction upon hearing his name and nodded to let her know he was listening, though he kept his eyes on the trail and on his surroundings.

"You are a Knight of Avalon yes?"

Draconis brought a hand to his chin in thought and kept it there even as he spoke to her. The rest of the group listened intently.

"I am of Avalon, yet not. Many of those who serve under my banner call Avalon home. I also know the Queen quite well in addition to her strongest knights. My title was gifted to me by the Queen in gratitude and as such, I took a mantle of Guardianship as a protector when they require aide."

That was interesting information to know, but Imina and Hekkeran only began to think of new questions.

"How large is Avalon?"

They watched as the man closed his eyes in thought. Eventually he spoke again.

"I suppose the main keep and its fortifications are the size of Arwintar. The rest of the city proper is around two times that."

Foresight gawked. Hekkeran and the rest of his team huddled in close. There voices were a fevered whisper, but Lucia and Draconis could hear them just fine. The wagon driver merely focused on the road ahead despite his look of disbelief.

"The main castle is the size of the capital?" Imina shivered at the thought. The group cast nervous glances about each other .

"What kind of army could a nation like that muster if they have commanders like him?!"

Arche thought back to what Miranda had spoken days ago. With the tiny reveal of the kind of coin he had, enchanted to resist weapon strikes and grim. Even resisting a Martial Art! What kind of place was Avalon? If a man like him pledged himself to this Queen, then what kind of person was she? She did not miss the fond affection which his eyes displayed for the briefest of moments when he mentioned her.

Casting a glance over her shoulder at him, he yawned slightly at the monotony of the trip thus far. He covered his open mouth with his hand . . . a hand which displayed a wedding band upon his ring finger. The declaration of absolute love and devotion for his wife two days ago rang in her ears.

The two telltale signs connected the dots in her mind and she paled before swiftly turning her attention back to the huddle. She said nothing, but her mind was racing like no other.

 _Oh . . . oh GODS! He can't be . . . the Queen of Avalon is his . . . ? No! Nononono! But what if it . . . oh no. That would make him . . ._

"Hey Arche, what happened to you? You look pale."

The young magic caster started and glanced about her teammates for a moment like a startled deer. Imina gave her a concerned look as Hekkeran and Roberdyck merely stared at her in confusion.

"It's nothing. Just a sudden chill." It was not a complete lie. It was nearly harvest season. The temperature around the empire had dropped steadily the past several days.

The rest of Foresight looked uneasily at each other. None of them were fooled by her behavior. Something was deeply bothering the young girl. Yet they could do little force anything out of her if she really did not want to share. Breaking from their huddle, Hekkeran asked the next question.

"You mentioned that your forces are fighting to help the Dragon Kingdom, are your troops from Avalon? Are they anything like the Empires Knight Orders?"

The man looked to Hekkeran with an apologetic expression on his features.

"You'll have to forgive my return question, but how are they structured? My force composition may very well be greatly different in their makeup and structure than the Empire."

Hekkeran looked to the others help him fill the blanks in the explanation for the organization of the Orders within the Empire. The man nodded as he patiently listened to them explain everything. A single knight order was comprised of twenty thousand men. It was an impressive number. With eight orders to call upon, no one could truly sneeze at a force of 160,000 fighting soldiers. That did not include the Air Guard or the Imperial Earth Guard or Royal Guard.

Hekkeran noticed that the Draconis was very attentive, his personal experience could see a man making mental notes and comparisons to what he knew his own forces possessed. Yet throughout it all, Hekkeran never once saw the man's eyes widen or dilate in surprise or fear. There was nothing but calculating measures and deep thought.

 _This man must have a lifetime of battle hardened warriors at his command. Most people would be impressed or awed at the very least. Yet he's not showing any sign of being worried. I mean, sure, he could probably wipe our a large portion of an order with his Martial Arts, but he is only one man. Spells are a problem, but only until the masses are upon him. What does he know?_

"Hekkeran, you say that the orders are made up of career soldiers. Yet for all I have heard and seen they have never truly fought a true, total war. That is troublesome."

The Worker group frowned as a whole. Total war? What did he mean by that?

"I told the Emperor such when we met. What he does to the Re-Estize kingdom to the east is his own business, but it is not a war. It is a border skirmish for a single moment of the year. He has not experienced total war."

Roberdyck could see a haunted look in the man's eyes as he spoke the words 'total war'. Something about the words told him that if such a thing were to be unleashed upon the Empire, it would not survive. Yet he felt compelled to ask regardless.

"What encompasses your meaning? The words total war?"

His answer was as chilling as his tone. "A war in which allows the unrestricted use on any and all forms of weaponry, in addition to having no limitations on territories or combatants be they holy grounds to children and women or elderly. No objective is sacred, no rules of war are enforced. Everything is a lie and all is permitted."

They could see him grit his teeth as he finished the explanation. There was an obvious anger to the concept as the words lips his lips through clenched teeth. Arche thought of her sisters and shuddered. It sounded like a nation encompassing bandit raid from anyone involved. Imina and Hekkeran were not enjoying the thoughts of any weapon being made use of without a care. Some of them were downright evil in design and intent. Roberdyck was horrified at the thoughts of sacred grounds being desecrated and not a single person would care. Even the most ruthless of generals obeyed the unwritten laws of warfare. To just completely ignore them all?

Before any of them could say anything, Lucia spoke up from her position ahead of them.

"We're approaching the village. I can see what might be the elder waving at us."

Lucia turned to them and motioned for the wagon driver to continue as she slowed her horse to allow Draconis to come up alongside her.

"Continue into the village and speak with th elder. I have something to discuss with Draconis."

The man nodded and as distance grew between them, Foresight noticed Lucia gesturing to the left and right of the village.

"They're probably discussing how to set up watches. Let's deal with the elder and get some details. I heavily doubt that they will just leave us out here."

The group nodded as they came up on the village's outer fence. Crude as it was, it was a far cry better than no boundaries at all. The aging representative greeted them with a tired smile. It was obvious that he had gone for more than a night or two without adequate rest. Heavy bags rested under his eyes.

"Greetings Workers. I was hoping someone would take our request. I honestly did not expect such a swift response."

Hekkeran took the lead as the spokesman. Shaking the man's hand firmly, he nodded.

"Indeed. Though the greater details were not mentioned in the forms. Do you have a room that we can talk about things more in depth?"

The elder nodded and motioned to a home that seemed no larger than any of the others, but had a simple placard upon the door frame. They took that as a sign that represented the chief's home. As they began to follow him to his house, the man glanced back over his shoulder at Lucia and Draconis who remained on horseback just outside the outskirts. Both of them seemed to be debating over something as the crimson haired man shook his head before gesturing to the east.

"Will your associates not be joining us?"

Hekkeran looked back at them and saw Draconis take notice of them. The man waved them on before guiding his horse on a circuit that told them that he was making a patrol of the area before joining them.

"Not immediately by the looks of it. They're probably scouting the area to get a better lay of the land while we speak with you. It saves time this way."

Hekkeran could respect that dividing up of tasks. It would indeed save a great deal of time.

They entered the elder's home and sat around the table. The older man began with little preamble.

"It started around six months ago. The children would go out to the fields and when they would return, they would have a trinket or two. Nothing terribly noticeable. A fresh set of sandals or mended clothes. Most of use were merely thankful for not having to mend their clothes themselves. Yet recently, some of the children have not returned. Some of the older ones who set out to fetch them have not come home either. Then a week ago, one of them did return, but he looked so different that his parents were frightened by the change."

Imina and the rest of them frowned. Arche leaned forward with a curious expression.

"Elder, what manner of changes were present?"

The village chief tapped the floor with his walking cane and the side door opened up. The young man that stepped forward could not have been older than sixteen. His clothes were clean. Not just that, but they were made from exceptional fabric akin to something an affluent merchant would be able to purchase. He wore boots of well cured leathers and the most startling was the short sword at his side.

It was of immaculate quality that they had only seen in the top shelves of weapon merchants or commanding officers in the Knight Orders. The youth's eyes held an intelligence and sharp edge to them that Arche had seen in well learned professors. The youth bowed with his right hand crossing his heart.

"Greetings. I take it you are here about the disappearances of my fellow villagers. Please do not worry yourselves. None of them are hurt."

The older man turned to them with a tired expression.

"Young Michael here swears he was not harmed and only has been treated well by who ever it is taking the children, but he was not like this before. He even shows impressive skill with that sword by his side. He is adamant about not giving it up. His parents believe him the victim of some kind of devil."

The young man grit his teeth and clenched his fists but said nothing before sighing dejectedly. He shook his head sadly and began to leave the room when Hekkeran spoke up.

"Wait. Michael was it? I want to hear your side of things. If anything, recently I've learned that not everything is what it seems. Please, tell us your side of the story."

A spark of hope filled the youth's brown eyes. Nodding firmly, he stood in front of them with a kind of easy attention that bespoke some kind of rigorous training regiment. Imina was not quite comfortable with the youth displaying a degree of military like training and gestured to the remaining chair.

"You can take a seat you know."

Roberdyck motioned to the elder with a placating gesture. "It will be okay elder. We will get to the root of this, but just dismissing his words out of hand actually will make this harder than it needs to be. Let us hear him out and we'll make our own decisions on what we hear."

It was clear to them that the elder was not fully on board with the idea, but he nodded for the sake of figuring out what was going on. Michael took a seat at the table.

"Thank you for this. I owe you for giving me the opportunity to address this issue. I know what it can look like, but I can promise you it is anything but. I left to find my younger siblings after they disappeared a little over two weeks ago and had not returned. Certainly, they had gone out before and returned with mended clothing as the elder mentioned, but when they did not come home, I ventured out."

The group nodded and motioned for him to continue.

"After nightfall, a pale light like that of a lantern guided me to an ironclad gate that closed off a stone wall. I did not recognize the writing upon the plaque, but the others from the village and even some not of our village were within the walls. Some were playing happily while others were before a pair of Lady Knights taking martial lessons. When I entered upon seeing my siblings, I was asked if I wanted to join them."

Roberdyck nodded quietly as he followed along. "Who asked you this? The Lady Knights you mentioned?"

The youth shook his head negatively.

"No sir. It was the Lord of the establishment. Lord Irving stated that we could remain if we wished to improve ourselves. It was the only condition for staying with them; to always improve. So I asked for lessons and permission to become a squire."

Arche and the others frowned a bit. Even if what Michael said was true, there was no way that he would have refined his speech and the way he carried himself so dramatically within a mere two weeks. Arche smelled magic, and powerful magic to make such a change happen.

Hekkeran frowned as he spoke for his team.

"Two weeks? I am sorry, but that is impossible. I don't know what kind of tutelage he gave you but even the most basic of sword techniques takes months or even years to fully grasp, much less master."

The youth frowned and stared dead into Hekkeran's eyes. The older man saw a clear, determined expression in the young squire's eyes. His mind thought back to a time when he also held the same kind of determination when he had first set out to make his fortunes in the world. Yet there was something else there as well. Something he felt that he had not possessed those years back.

He could not place it though.

"Oh? One of the village youths I presume." Draconis's voice made them turn to see the man with Lucia close behind at the door.

They nodded as they approached the table. As there were not enough chairs, the two dragons remained standing. The elder nodded to them, confirming the suspicion. He had seen them with Foresight and assumed them to be part of the help sent, but upon closer inspection, he wondered who these two were. They were so much better outfitted than foresight. Not that the Worker group was insufficient, not in the least, but the quality of the equipment of the two groups was staggeringly disjointed.

The youth eyed the two with wide, surprised eyes before becoming rather quiet and introspective. Both groups noticed the change in the youth but said nothing. Hekkeran took note that he was receiving a look of respect from Draconis for noticing yet remaining silent on the matter.

 _Let's not tip our hands._ Was the unspoken message between the two men.

Hekkeran decided to keep fishing for information as Draconis had not engaged with the youth. As the team leader of Foresight, he figured if they were going to get the reward for the job, might as well put in the work for it too. Having Draconis and Lucia around was just a security blanket at this point.

"Would you be willing to take us to that place? I am sure that if they're truly only helping you all the village would be less worried and paranoid."

He shook his head negatively. "I am sorry sir, but I cannot. I swore my word."

When Hekkeran tried to push further, a firm hand laid itself on his shoulder. The group looked up to see Draconis shake his head patiently.

"If he is a squire as he says, then his word is his bond. Do not make him break it. If we are to find this location, when must do so under our own merit. Such is the ways of knighthood."

Foresight as a whole frowned at him as he gave the boy a quiet nod and excused himself. Lucia shrugged her shoulders in confusion before following the man out of the house. As the door creaked loudly shut, the youth clenched his jaw and stared hard at the table.

"Please excuse me. I have nothing more to say at this time."

Hekkeran and the others could not say anything. No words would come to mind. This was all so bizarre to them. His speaking and tone, the mannerisms were too polished and refined despite the simple message. There was no way a village youth from a farming village could have changed so much in such a short time. The elder sighed heavily before tapping his cane on the floor. A different door opened to admit a woman and man frought with worry.

"Thank you so much for coming." The woman's voice was laced with gratefulness and concern even as her voice wavered from the stress of the situation. "We are his parents. I just fear he has fallen victim to the influence on an enemy of the Empire. The Bloody Emperor has actually done much good for us by rooting out those not worthy of their posts, but he is still strict about enemies of the empire."

They all nodded, Arche did so with particular fervor. She knew exactly what these concern parents were speaking of all too well. If you were not useful you were stripped of your position for those that would. It made sense, yet it was also cold hearted. If they reported this back to anyone, the news of some person teaching and taking on squires and training them in swordsmanship could be taken as a threat to the Empire and that would bring the sword of one of the Knight Orders down on the village. This mess was something that they already had their foot in, there was no way out.

Draconis had been right, this had been too suspicious . . . but it was too late to back out now.

* * *

 **Outside the Elder's Home**

* * *

"Why did you leave them in there. Obviously something else is going on with that boy."

"Indeed." Draconis's reply was both short and dry as they marched away from the house and back to their horses. "Yet that boy's reaction to you and me was more than just surprise. I saw recognition in his eyes. He knew me . . ."

That stopped Lucia in her tracks. Draconis merely continued to march up to his horse. Pulling himself up and into the saddle, he honestly was grateful that the steed was both patient and comfortable with him. All the other horses were skittish around the two of them. The beasts were smart, and their instincts told them that Lucia and he were not human at all. The fact that they had not panicked and tried to bolt from them said a lot for their natures.

"Lucia, I'm going to set up camp outside the perimeter of the village. I smell someone like us behind all these disappearances, and I want answers."

She glared at him even as she understood where he was coming from.

"Someone like us?!" She gestured madly tried to get him to stopping being so enigmatic.

As he turned the horse around to make off in the direction of the town's outer fence, he glanced over his shoulder with a hard look in his eyes. There was a veiled coldness that made her shiver and loudly swallow her words.

" _A player from YGGDRASIL."_

The [ _Message_ ] surprised her as she wondered what he meant to convey by telling her his suspicions over magical communication instead of aloud, but a scent wafted by her nose.

It was a group of scents that did not match any that Foresight gave off. The smells of oils, metals other than steel or even mythril. Orichalcum and even a hint of adamantite. Her dragon senses spoke to her; letting her know that valuable equipment and magic items were nearby. Items far more valuable than anything a farming village would ever purchase much less see on the normal day.

Her nose then told her something else, people close by, and one of them was not human. Scents of others. Six of them.

Not wanting to tip off whoever these newcomers were, she huffed and shook her head at Draconis as he rode off. If he had noticed them earlier then why had he only dropped the not so subtle hint earlier?

Walking up to her own mount, she stroked its neck lovingly as she spoke to it.

"What's going on with him? Ugh, I know you can't answer me. Damn it all. Come on, let's set up camp too."

* * *

 **Scattered Around the Village**

* * *

The Adamantite Team from the Argland Council State had broken into groups to track the Worker team and the two outliers. Two to keep tabs and listen in on the group known now to them as Foresight. Three others each tracked the lavender haired woman and the scarlet haired Knight of Avalon. Among them were two magic casters, a ranger, a healer, and two melee specialists. Their ranger was the only non human among them, but they trusted him with their lives. The man's fur stood on end the entire time after they had moved to be downwind of them during their trip due to the sensitive nature of horses.

He was a Rabbit Man that hailed from the Karnassus City-State, but called the Argland Council State his real home. He was quiet natured, but honest with his opinions and quick to point out errors and mistakes.

"Well? What were they talking about Vinny?"

Vinny motioned for silence. Damn Arene! The human mage was young for his rank, but meant well enough. Yet he was the biggest skeptic and chatterbox Vinny had ever had the misfortune of teaming up with. Thank the gods he kept he voice down to a bare whisper!

"The boy they were talking to was one of those villagers that went missing. He's oddly refined now in a short time that would be impossible. Something about becoming a knight's squire. It makes no sense." Vinny whispered in quiet tones that a person could barely make out.

At one of the stables, another pair of their team watched as Lucia spoke with her horse in frustration. They were one of the melee specialists and their healer. Watching her, they were intrigued by her lavender hair. When they had heard the reports, and assignment, they had assumed that the Lavender Spearwoman had been for her garb, but to see her hair that color had been a huge surprise. The two targets of their mission spoke more candidly than most partners. They had seen the ring on the Scarlet Swordsman's finger, but did not see a matching one on hers. Was she some kind of trusted confidant?

All they knew was that the Scarlet Swordsman was the new Martial Lord and claimed to be of Avalon's Knighthood in some form or fashion. They had not been ready for how tall the man was. He towered above their tallest member who was tracking him now. He was almost six feet. Huge for a human, but this man was even taller. Both of them heeded Vinny's warning, but remained skeptical.

"Do you really think that they're both not human? Vinny may say they don't smell human, but what does he mean by 'smelling human' anyway?" The young woman mage frowned, her cinnamon brown locks swayed with her motions. She shifted back and forth on her heels to keep her legs from cramping as she squatted behind a barrel.

"Probably like how a wolf smells different than we do. He is a rabbit man. I'll trust him on that, but they haven't noticed us yet I don't think." Their healer opined softly. He was one of the team's founding members with their leader. His dark black eyes squinted at their target. "Vanessa, I think she's moving. We should follow."

Vanessa made a negative grunt.

Due to their [ _Cloaks of Invisibility_ ] they could not see each other. The Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord had been generous enough, but to ask for items to let them see each other through their cloaks was asking too much. Going invisible to the eye was powerful, but being able to _see_ the invisible was mythical. Only a sparse few on the continent could claim such a thing and they were normally under the employ of the extremely influential or powerful.

Thus they were having to make subtle signs to each other about their locations from time to time. Now that their scout feared that their targets were not even human, there was no telling what kinds of abilities or tricks the two might have. It did not help at all that neither of their mages could detect anything about them. It was like they were voids among the sea of energies and powers. Did they both have the same Talent? To have an artifact or magic item that blocked them from any sort of magical detection or analysis was just flat out impossible.

Having come to the collective consensus that they both had powerful Talents, they all agreed to be even more cautious than normal. This whole scenario screamed at them to run from this job with these mysteries piling up on one another, but how where they supposed to report back to one of the Dragon Councilors and tell them they ran from the job he personally gave them?

"Stop Victor. What if they have noticed us and are bluffing? See that? She's going in the complete opposite direction of that Scarlet Swordsman. If they have noticed us, it divides us completely up. No, we regroup first. Let's head toward Vinny and Arene."

Victor frowned and paled a bit with her logic. Vanessa had always been the brains of the operation. Helped when she was an affluent merchant's daughter and decently educated.

"Okay, you make a valid point. Let's head back over to that elder's home. Remember the sign?"

"Yes, the crow call whistle."

The whistle was not magical, merely a well made wooden whistle made by Vinny to imitate a crows caw. It was their sign to let others in their group know they were near whenever they all got separated. It was perfect for this situation. Crows were everywhere in the world. So hearing one would draw little attention compared to other bird calls. Especially when they were not a common avian to the area.

The two carefully made their way back to the elder's house, watching their steps. As it was still daylight out, suddenly appearing footsteps in the soft dirt would tip off those around them paying enough attention to the surroundings. Approaching the house, Vanessa took out her whistle and gave it two quick calls followed by a slightly longer one. The signal was to say "two" and "approaching" to let them know it was two of their own closing it.

They stood by the west side of the house as they had all agreed upon before parting ways. Eventually, the group of Workers filed out of the house, the blond man with twin blades nodded to the couple that followed them outside with the elder.

"I understand. We will be looking into the incident and report back to you what we find if anything malicious is going on."

"Thank you so much. We pray for your success."

The group departed to their wagon, probably to discuss their plan of action. The elder turned to the couple with a thoughtful expression. His voice carried a bit more than he probably intended. They could make out his tone.

"Hmm. They seem like decent Workers character wise. However, the two with them seem so much higher ranked than them. Perhaps they were observers? Bah, I'm getting too old for this. Rest easy, we'll have an answer soon enough. Return to your home."

The couple nodded and left the elder to return to the interior of his home. A moment after the door shut, they heard the quiet shuffle of grass to their left. Vinny's voice met their ears, though he still kept his voice down.

"Okay, let's get back together with the remainder of the team and talk. This got potentially complicated."

They all quietly agreed and Vanessa pointed out the direction which direction their leader had gone. Slinking off in that direction, the group found their leader a surprising distance away from the outer perimeter fences of the village behind a set of hedgerows and trees. Their second magic caster was with them but both of them were no longer invisible. It was strange. The cloaks did not have a time table.

As they all began to close in on the pair, Vinny tweeted the crow signal four times in a paired sequence. When he finished, the leader turned to the direction of the noise and motioned for them to take a wide arc toward the overgrowth of plantlife. Not questioning why, they all did so and soon found the reason.

Vinny suddenly popped into view about twenty feet from their leader. The rest of them were purged of the invisibility as well. Quickly rushing as silently as they could to cover, they all looked to each other in shock. What happened?

"Leader? What in the world?"

"Keep your voices down, he's thirty feet away on the other side of these hedgerows."

They peered through the leaves and underbrush from below the hedges to see that Draconis was indeed just thirty feet away. He had shed his armor, or at least the main body portion and his armguards. They did not see it laying around and assumed it was inside the tent he had put up. Though it was less of a tent and more of a full sized ger.

The sheer size and well crafted fabrics spoke of master craftsmanship and the little embellishments were not something a common soldier or even knight would possess. This man was a commander of knights. Someone of clearly high standing. Nobility? High nobility?

The outside of the ger at the main entrance flap was a banner with a symbol none of them would forget. The sword and dragon combination signifying Draconis's Coat of Arms. Beside it was a pendragon blue banner with a golden dragon head roaring to the skies. Artorias's personal banner and the banner of Avalon. The group made particular note of that.

"Well, damn. Looks like the reports were right. He really is affiliated with the Queendom that merfolk announced. He is a _long_ way from home."

"Indeed? Then why not come out from hiding and talk with me if I am the object of your attention and not Foresight."

The team nearly leaped out of their skins at the man's voice addressing them. He had not even turned to look in their direction. For a time, they all held their breaths, waiting for him to make a move, yet he merely sat with his back turned to them. He was reading something . . . a tome?

After a long, awkward silence, he spoke again, and this time the timbre in his voice held one of thinning patience.

"I am no stranger the the cloak and dagger of espionage. I know that there are six of you. One of you is not human. Lucia may have only recently detected your presence but I have known about you since we arrived here at this village. You must have remained downwind a good distance for me not to notice you sooner. Out of respect for your tracking experience I will not make any moves to harm you, but I will defend myself if I feel the necessity."

The team looked to Vinny and the rabbit man shook his head in resignation. The leader spoke up from his crouched location.

"You have us. We may trust your word? You will not harm us if we do not try to harm you in turn?"

"You already have it."

He nodded firmly and stood up. Arene stood as well, but had an incredulous expression writ large upon his face.

"Are you maddened?"

"We are already found out Arene. Still your tongue and we may yet live to tell this tale. No aggressive moves." his voice held authority and his team nodded in agreement. One by one, they filed out from behind the hedges to come around the front of the man of their mission. The man sat on a small camp stool placed upon a large spread outdoor rug. It was large enough for them all to sit on without getting grass stains. None of them recognized the materials it was woven from, but they could not imagine the loom that would have been needed nor how many weavers it would have taken to make such a thing.

It was a dark violet with silver embellishments. Yet as they sat, the magic casters and healer of their teams felt very unnerved. It was like they were within a void. As if reading their unease, the man on the stool chuckled.

Now that they got a closer look at him, he was actually rather handsome. Yet his eyes drew their attention. Prismatic swirls made them wonder just who this man was. This detail had not been in the report. Taking a glance into the ger, they did not see his armor plate. There was a large, comfortable looking bed and a trunk at its foot. Yet other than that there was little to see. Yet where the hells had the bed come from?

"So, you are an Adventurer team . . . I guess you are a bit better mannered than the leader of Cyrstal Tear of the Dragon Kingdom. Damn pedophile." He cursed the last part darkly. The admission made them all darken a bit.

They all had heard about his disdain for Adventurers. They had also heard he had bested the Fierce Flash in a one-on-one duel. This shed a lot of light upon the man's fierce dislike of Adventurers. The leader of their group bit back his own curse. Despite his obvious bitterness with the Guild, he was still giving them a civilized chance instead of just dismissing them out of hand or merely attacking them.

"Forgive the cloak and dagger but we are on assignment. Your victory over the Martial Lord Go Gin has reached the ears of many in a short amount of time and our client found you worth investigating."

Draconis nodded slowly though he looked as if he swallowed bitter medicinal herbs.

Was it possible that he did not truly realize the scope of beating Go Gin in single combat signified?

"I see. If your client is seeking to hire me, then you can tell him that is not up for debate. My services are being rendered to the Dragon Kingdom due to their plight and of my own volition. Only my Queen can make any demands of me and have me answer to them immediately. One of you mentioned that I was far from home. Where exactly has my Queen found herself?"

The group glared at Arene as a collective whole at the same instant and he held his hands up in a weak attempt to defend himself from their glares. Their leader sighed forcefully in resignation and began to answer.

"Our information tells of merfolk reporting that your Queen and her people are off the coast of the Holy Roble Kindgom's west coast. On the other side of this continent. The Dragon Kingdom to the south lies east of the Slane Theocracy and the Abelion Planes. Beyond the Planes to the west lies the Great Wall which makes up the eastern border of the Northern and Southern portions of the Holy Roble Kingdom."

The knight of Avalon bobbed his head up and down thoughtfully.

"Then I truly am a great distance from my Queen. I suppose a trade is in order then. You are here to observe me. Why? I wish to return to her and her people once I finish helping the Dragon Kingdom. I do not render aide only to suddenly back out before the work is completed. Tell me what I would like to know and I will provide you all with information in turn, know however that not all information is at liberty to be given."

His voice was firm by the end of his offer. Their leader knew another leader when he saw one. This man was not one of those that chose to hang back at his home and send orders from afar. No, before them was a field commander. A man who bellowed his orders in the thick of combat and fought with those he lead. One of a rare breed of higher ups that lead by example and not just through words. The swords by his side were not ones of station, but of battle if he was to make any judgments.

There was a definite feeling of power and authority even with the man dressed down and merely sitting before them with a tome in his hands. He had not a single doubt that should this man take up the sword against them, the majority of them would die before they could kill him. Something about this Scarlet Swordsman spoke of not just a Knight of Avalon, but something more.

He possessed a Talent. One that he called [ _Recognition of Authority_ ] that allowed him to see who possessed true leadership qualities and who was not worthy of their posts. It was one of the reasons he managed to always snag quality jobs and tell what clients were offering worthwhile paying jobs. It was not perfect, but it did help immensely. Right now, this man eclipsed anything he had felt other than Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord. In fact they were neck and neck. This man was an equal to a Dragon Lord?

 _This is not a man I want to make an enemy of. Far better would it be to remain on his good graces. If a man like this is so dedicated to his Queen, what does that mean of Avalon?_

"I am Bartholomy, the leader of Adamantite Team: Pioneer." he introduced himself and his team quickly, with business like tone. Draconis seemed to nod at the move.

Bartholomy had once been a Knight General under King Ramposa III of Re-Estize before the political bickering and corruption of the nobility finally pushed his patience too far. Resigning from his post, he took his family northwest to the Argland Council States and became an Adventurer to make up for the loss in income. He did well for his family. Though the work worried his wife to no end. He knew the games of nobles, yet this man played it differently.

"You already know a bit of who I am, but introductions are important at junctures like this one." His posture straightened on his seat. "I am Draconis Brightblade. The title of Knight Most Heavenly was bestowed to me by my Queen."

He relaxed his posture and smirked at them. "You are already on better footing than Crystal Tear was at our first meeting. I have a sneaking suspicion that you cannot tell me who your client is in specific, so I won't ask. Are you here confirming rumors? Or here for more than that?"

Vanessa glanced at Bartholomy. The older man nodded and she scooted forward a slight bit. As Draconis's eyes fell on her, she tensed all over. It wasn't the look of a man running his eyes over her body, but a kind of analytical gaze that seemed to both acknowledge and gauge her strengths, her weaknesses. This was the look of a commander of soldiers.

"Mostly confirming rumors ser knight. Yet the more we see and hear the more I admit be intrigued. Why are you helping the Dragon Kingdom?"

Shutting his tome with a hard snap. He set the tome aside.

"Should it not be natural to help those in need? I have known despair, hard as that might be to believe. No man or beast is not incapable of feeling this. Anyone who tells you otherwise is a liar, or has lead an exceedingly sheltered life. Innocent lives are being snuffed out without care. Should that not be enough?"

* * *

 **Lucia's Campsite**

* * *

Lucia had her parade tent assembled and set. She sat just inside upon a plush cushion and reclined. She had received a [ _Message_ ] from Draconis only a short moment after he had set up his own camp opposite of hers on the far side of the village perimeter as they had discussed earlier while Foresight spoke with the elder of the village. They both agreed that by doing so, they would be able to intercept whoever or whatever was taking the children when it appeared regardless of where.

Providing that they were being kidnapped by something entering the village itself. The possibility remained that it was either an underground route, in which they had no way of finding out. Between the two of them, what detection magic they could bring to bear was limited. It was why they both had specialized caster NPCs back at their homes; Phantasmagoria's All the World's Stage for her. The Lair for Draconis.

She had brought up the possibility according to the young boy, that it was less a kidnapping and more of a lure. Something naturally beckoning them. Of course Draconis pointed out that if the lure was set intentionally then it was still kidnapping. She had belted him in the shoulder hard for that comment. Though he was not technically wrong. It still chaffed her how observant he could be all on his own.

"Still though, now that I think about it, I did offer my own assistance." She frowned and removed a disc like object from a trunk by her side. "He is working hard to attain more help in a battle he's sure will spiral out of control. Don't know why, the beastmen aren't strong enough to conquer his forces let alone mine. Yet, I cannot say the same for the Dragon Kingdom itself."

Groaning, she turned and twisted in frustration.

"Damn it all." She willed the magical device on and woman with striking violet hair with a single streak of emerald green through it on the left side of her bangs answered her call.

"Yes Mistress Lucia? You've rarely called like this."

Lucia nodded. "Awaken the Herald and assemble the Auspices of War. We go to the aide of a friend."

The woman nodded a few times before Lucia's words truly sank in. Her nods came to a bone crunching halt and her face drained of color as she gawked at her mistress.

"M-Milady?" Lucia growled lowly, the sound making the young woman on the other end of the line shoot ramrod straight before practically shouting over the connection. "Ma'am! As you command Mistress Lucia!"

The woman cut the connection as she knew that the Auspices of War . . . Phantasmagoria's PoP army would begin rallying around The Herald. Her personal NPC. If she offered her help, she was not going to back out of it. To her it had nothing to do with honor, though she could respect Draconis for keeping to his code. No, her word was a matter of personal pride more than honor. Damn her if she didn't keep it.

"Question is . . . how many to send?"

That was the real issue. Being the Rank 4 guild during YGGDRASIL's lifespan was not just for show. They had possessed a full 100 man roster and ninety percent of them had been level 90 and above. Their lowest level member had been level 85. Together, the group had racked up impressive feats and their armies had crushed many a guild in the Guild Wars. Save for one.

Avalon.

Artorias Pendragon's guild had been one of the few to rebuff them during a guild war. That alone rocketed them to the spotlight. The Rank 4 Guild rebuffed by a guild that wasn't even in the top 50. Why had they gone under the radar? Their member size. To think that a fifteen man guild could erect defenses so nightmarishly difficult to breach that even they had never won a guild war when the guild was on the defensive.

Sure, they had beaten them when the guild was forced to attack instead of defend during the Guild Wars, but offense and defense were drastically different in their execution. Even then, the guild of Avalon had pierced their own defenses far enough before defeat to warrant a serious change in their own strategies. After many of them had gone digging and found out that nearly all of the members of Avalon were former military wardogs of the Arcology War . . . well . . . that bit of info remained locked and sealed within the membership of Phantasmagoria. It certainly explained the ruthlessness of their offense and defense during the Wars.

During the Dragonsong War, Phantasmagoria had fought on the human side of the conflict. What members they did have participate had been shocked by the revelation that Avalon had sided with the dragons. Avalon had been ridiculed as kiss ups to the developers due to the obvious love developers had for dragons. Yet as the war dragged on and she herself was a dragon player, she began to realize why. They had fewer numbers. The dragons, not the humans, were the underdogs.

Sure, dragons were insanely powerful, but waves upon waves of human assaults by players and NPCs alike overran them. She knew every member of Avalon fought to the death to defend dragons, especially if one of the First Brood had been there. The losses encurred from the players of one side compared to the players of the other were horrible. Those fighting with the dragons made sure to lay waste to as many opponents as possible.

The judgment of the game concerning the tides of war stated that several victories the human side of the war had gained were naught but pyrrhic wins. The losses were so devastating to the humans that it was tantamount to a crippling defeat. Fights against parties made up of Avalon's Knights of the Round were particularly devastating. One recorded fight between an even party of six vs six showed that the fighters of Avalon anything but conventional when it got dire. Knee strikes, headbutts, and throat strikes had lashed out at surprising times. Eye gouging during blade locks and hidden blades to stab at feet or wrists. Dirty fighting. Even biting had not been left off the table. Not that any of these did tremendous damage to anyone's HP bar, but the psycological damage to player's not used to such savagery were normally stunned enough to suddenly find themselves getting killed starting with their healers and leadership. The group nearly always ganged up on one target if the chance provided itself.

Yet the scariest thing about that recording, was that none of them called out any of their weapon skills or magic spells during those fights. Friendly fire was a thing during that war. It could not be toggled on and off like it normally could. "The Chaos of War" was the setting. Yet they rarely ever caught themselves in each others attacks despite not having the audio prompt or warning from their allies.

It was during this situation that the courtesy of calling out your spell or attack to keep your allies aware of what you were doing became a weakness rather than a strength. The Knights of the Round were uncannily informed of spells and what they did despite having only a smattering of spellcasting ability.

 _That_ was the fault of Grand Mage Merlin of Avalon. The man knew a ludicrous number of spells and he was actually the man in charge of "The Spellmaster's Compendium". A forum site that recorded and cataloged every spell seen and used in PvP and PvE content. The man also had a secret weapon that she had found out the hard way. His trump card.

He had called it the "Archmage's Incantation". It allowed him to, "Cast a Super Tier spell instantly twice a day and reduce all my MP costs by 75%."

He had said that to her after he had blasted the area with the Super Tier spell [ _Big Bang_ ] and wiped her surviving teammates off the map with it during an encounter with him and his party.

She remembered that fight well. After all, it had been the fight that made her switch sides during that event, much to her guild mate's surprise and indignation.

* * *

 **? Years Ago . . . YGGDRASIL**

 **Dragonsong War**

 **Location Unknown**

* * *

A proverbial no man's land. That's what it was meant to be. Beautiful. Fertile. A land filled with green and trees of many differing kinds. Fruits and wildlife teemed in abundance. More than enough to share and be shared. Scattered among the boughs of trees and rivers were villages and towns with mixed races living in peace . . .

. . . not anymore . . .

Now the land was a smoldering wasteland of embers and death. Blood of all races ran deep as dragons waged their bloodthirsty revenge against the humankind that had betrayed their sacred pact. A blood sister of the First Brood, slain by the hands of men greedy for power not meant for their kith and kin. Slain in cold blood. Blood drawn from a dragoness with no intent to ever harm mankind.

The song of dragons rose to the skies and into the aether itself. Crying bloody murder. All dragon kind heard her death scream. Her cry of betrayal. Her brother Nidhogg answered the call with the dragon song of murder, of revenge. A full seventh of the entire world's population of dragon kind answered his earth shaking roar of fury. This was the 1007th year of that bloodsoaked campaign . . .

Dragons according to the lore, were beings of pure magic. Truly powerful dragons could change their forms to whatever they desired, thus the dragon race players ability to look humanoid. It was also the reason they progressed as magic casters regardless of whatever levels they gained otherwise.

However, the betrayers of dragon kind and the pact made with mankind eons ago had developed the [ _Dragon Slayer_ ] class of armaments to place mankind on equal footing. It was with these dreadful weapons that they slew a daughter of Midgardsomer. With these weapons cursed mankind to an over millennium long war.

Despite some misgivings about the reward for the quest they had been on by the Archbishop of the Ishgardian Orthodox Church to hunt heretics who would "betray" mankind by imbibing the blood of dragons and becoming wild, berserk dragons of Nidhogg, she and her party came across a village being evacuated. The soldiers from the Church began to cut down those fleeing and dragons rushed to the innocent's defenses less out of protective natures and more from hatred.

As the fighting began and they were about to close on some of the fleeing villagers themselves, three knights walked past the fleeing people with stead strides straight for them. Her group tensed as did she. They had appeared from nothing. Invisibility obviously.

Two of their members were newer but held lots of promise. Seeing only three men stand before them, even obviously as players, they mocked them openly.

"Ha! Three against six? You guys are history."

The leader of their party silenced the new guy.

"Quiet! Those are Knights of Avalon. Shit!"

"Is that Draconis Brightblade? The PPK'er. Ah shit."

It was true. Draconis held the middle position. The blond knight to the left of him frowned darkly. In contrast, the man to the right laughed openly, a humored LolZ Emoji hovered over his head.

"Looks like you're known by sight alone now Draconis." Draconis shook his head ruefully.

"I guess that means something. You six, begone from this place. You are not welcomed here. They wished to live in peace and the Church brings nothing but death."

The second new player in her party had laughed and put up a mocking face emoji.

"Like we care. What is your quest giving you? Probably a whole lot of nothing!"

* * *

 **Battle Music of Awesome**

 **Ace Combat 5 Track 50/92: Grabacr**

 **. . . Play?**

* * *

Draconis drew steel and set for battle, his shield glared brilliantly at them and they all receive notifications that only he could be attack for the next thirty seconds. Even their own tank gawked at the timer.

"Thirty seconds? What the fu . . ." The man never finished the phrase as their healer, one of two, screamed as the whinny of a steed smashed down upon their group. The second healer also screamed, but stumbled away, not outright killed like his friend.

Gareth had dive bombed the poor cleric from on high. The attack was pre-emptive and dealt bonus damage, enough to one shot their healer, who had an ultra squishy build. Their second healer had been attacked by the Guild of Avalon's leader, Artorias Pendragon herself.

Recorded footage later would reveal that she dove from the skies as well, probably riding with Gareth. The activation of his forced aggro targeting ability had been the signal to strike. However, as Gareth rode past and scooped up Artorias, they could do nothing, their focus forced on Draconis as his partners rushed their melee fighters.

Down a healer at the start of combat and with the second one having to heal himself already, they were at a serious disadvantage. She jumped into the skies diving in on Draconis as he fended off both of their melee fighters with shield and sword work. Closing fast, she felt something was off and canceled her dive with her [ _Sky Dancer_ ] ability. Gareth blazed past her previous location with a diving charge that would have caught her in the back before she got to her target.

Thinking she was in the clear, she was startled by the war yell of Artorias rushing for her. Cursing her own forgetfulness, she shifted, suffering a glancing blow as the Queen of Knights dove past. She had lunged from the saddle of Gareth's alicorn! Twisting and turning in the air, Lucia was the only flight capable member of their party in a fight. She saw Gareth fly past Artorias before she began to lose more altitude and scooped her back onto the saddle.

"Jesus, they're literally dancing in the air without [ _Fly_ ]! They're insane!"

Glancing down, she saw that the two others with Draconis had bypassed their melee fighters and were gunning for the remaining healer. The timer at the edge of her vision glared an angry timer at her.

 _Thirteen seconds left! Damn it!_

Then she realized it. Where was their sixth party member? Why was their magic caster not casting spells?!

Down below, the remaining healer was trying, and failing to avoid the two knights with death in their eyes. He had activated his [ _Sacred Shroud_ ] to avoid all damage for fifteen seconds in the hopes that their magic caster would save him, but realized that he too was under the effect of Draconis's forced aggro ability. Still, the magic caster in their party could cast magic that could target everyone in the enemy party, so why wasn't he?

Said magic caster cursed under his breath every time he casted. The spells would conjure, but immediately fizzle out. He was not in an anti-magic area so what was going on?! A wry chuckle mad him spin around to come face to face with one of the fiercest magic casters of YGGDRASIL. Merlin, the Grand Mage.

"Oho! Naughty boy! Not even noticing me until I gave myself away."

The Phantasmagoria magic caster cursed aloud and waved his hand in the air from down low to up on high before slashing down with his hand.

"Damn you! [ _Reality Slash_ ]!" The spell was one of the fastest and strongest spells in the whole game. Against other magic casters its power was ridiculous.

Merlin caught the transparent spell of power with his bare hand and the spell shattered before it even hit him.

"[ _Master Arcanum_ ], [ _Supreme Dispel Magic_ ]. Congratulations on knowing that spell, but it won't work on me. It's too mainstream."

The lilting laugh from Merlin shook the magic caster to his core. _Catching a Tier X spell and negating it? Without a staff or wand?_

A series of laughs came from the melee fighting with Draconis. Both of the melee fighters looked to have him on the ropes, both warriors unleashing weapon skill after weapon skill on the man as he backed to keep a wall behind him. He was pretty beaten up, his Hp draining slowly but steadily despite his regeneration.

Something was wrong though. Lucia knew Draconis well enough through the dragon player forums. He was not one to just take tons of damage without reason. She knew he had healing spells, why wasn't he using them?

It was when she looked past him that she saw it. He was backed against a wall. He was at a hole in the wall and keeping their attacks from getting to a NPC shaking in terror behind him. He was using his healing spells on an NPC to keep the NPC alive. It had to be an objective for his party's quest.

 _What a vicious quest. Damn devs! Making players keep NPCs alive from other players . . . that's just crazy!_

Draconis roared in fury and shoved his shield into the face of his primary assailant, using the chance to stake his foot to the ground by shoving his sword through the top of his boot. Letting go of his sword, he cracked his second assailant across the face with a mean backhand, the damage did not do much, but the effect was what he was going for.

Since the entire game was played from first person perspective and you felt everything, getting backhanded by anyone who was not a monk or martial artist class was just flat out insulting. Especially from melee classes.

"You basta-URGHHKKk!" He gagged and dropped his weapons as he clutched his throat from getting shield pummeled in the jugular with the edge of the shield. That was the reason many magic casters did not like melee combat, the nervous system feedback from the Dive System made certain blows just not pleasant. It was why nut shots against anyone regardless of gender was an massive unspoken taboo.

"That was dirty you punk ass PKK-blehgh!" His voice was cut off as the shield smashed into his face before getting pommel smashed in the gut as Draconis retrieved his sword from the man's foot. Adding insult to injury, he grabbed him by the hair and smashed him into a knee strike combined with the effect of [ _Stunning Strike_ ] making him immobile for three seconds.

"Go, run!" Draconis yelled and the NPC. The villager nodded and scampered off.

While all of that was going on, Merlin was toying with their magic caster. Counter-Spelling was a mechanic in the game that was hard to do, but anyone who could with any sort of frequency was feared and respected all the same. You had to cast the exact same spell at the same instant or before it struck the target and have your spell collide with theirs, their magical energies canceling each other out. At least, that was the theory anyway.

Actually doing it in the heat of combat was another thing entirely. The only safe way to counter-spell effectively no matter what was the use of [ _Dispel Magic_ ] and its stronger versions. But when the spell only revealed itself as a Tier IV and its stronger versions were Tier VII and Tier X respectively coupled with insane MP costs per cast . . .

Yet Merlin was having little care in the world and continued to Counter-Spell with either the spells their man knew or the [ _Dispel Magic_ ] series.

She knew that their Seeker was about to strike and dove on Merlin this time. Not caring that Gareth was targeting her to keep control of the skies, she ignored the hit she took from the knight as she dove on Merlin. Their Seeker lunged up from the shadow of the Grand Mage going for a lethal strike when she saw it.

Artorias smashed into him from above with [ _Spiral Descent_ ], pegging him to the ground with her panoply just moments before she hit Merlin. The mage grunted at the hit and lunged back. Artorias slashed at her, forcing her to back away. Something collided with her from behind. It wasn't an attack though and she looked to see one of the fighters in combat with Draconis had bumped into her.

"Damn it, I thought we were getting close to wiping him out, but that damn dragon power! Lucia!"

She glanced over to her other teammate to find not Draconis in his human form, but a burnished gold dragon the size of a two story house swatting their other fighter toward them with a tail slap. A pair of golden leathery wing spread wide and the aura of his [ _Frightful Presence_ ] shadowed them all.

At that time, Draconis had not yet gained the Dragon Ascendant Class. She had not either. Only to gain it after the Dragonsong War's end. She knew that to fight Draconis on even footing, she would need to transform as well, but there was a major hitch.

The Ishgardian Church NPCs were zealots. If she transformed now, they would all turn on her. It was a system warning that she got whenever she got the urge to use her dragon form. Draconis was under no such yoke by siding with the dragons, he was one of them.

"I can't!"

"What?!" Her party leader looked at her incredulously. Dragon NPCs were a challenge, but a dragon PC with player support? "Damn it Lucia, he can kill us with just dragon breath attacks."

"We'll be expunged from the Dragonsong War as an ally of the Church if I transform!"

It was then that she saw it . . .

A little girl NPC no older than ten was trying to help a wyrmling dragon that had its tail caught under rubble. A Ishgardian soldier ran her through from behind, killing her and the dragonling. He heard his words clearly.

"Heretic scum."

Something broke inside her. She knew that this was a game. Yet that struck a chord in her. A fury.

Letting loose a blood curdling scream, she transformed. The action drawing the aggro of every Ishgardian NPC in the area.

She was an enemy now . . . and she no longer cared. She noted in the haze of anger that her quest parameters had changed. Instead of hunting heretics . . . it read, "Defend the Outcasts of Ishgard".

 _We've been hunting Ishgardians? Oh my god._

She saw Draconis's lumbering form rip the Ishgardian soldier in half with a bite attack and crouch in front of the dead little girl and dragonling. She could feel high tier healing magic. [ _Reserrection_ ] for an NPC? Vaguely she noticed the target counter for her new mission.

"Do Not Let Villagers Die 8/10. Time Remaining: 00:40."

She roasted five Ishgardian soldiers with her breath weapon. The counter changed in the corner of her eye.

"Do Not Let Villagers Die 6/10. Time Remaining: 00: 20."

He had raised not just the girl, but the dragonling as well? The dragonling was a villager . . . It sent a chill down her spine.

"Lucia, what the hell are you doing?!" She looked back at the party she had been with. They were all enemies now. The party that Draconis and Artorias were a part of were allies. What a cruel quest line.

God damned devs . . .

It was then that Merlin appeared overhead and raised his hands to the air. The runes of a Super Tier spell shined like the sun. All NPCs not of the village froze at the sight. Yet none of them had time to try and stop him as they pulsed and a mote of fire descended upon them all. She vaguely noticed that all of Artorias's party gathered under Draconis's huddled wings and he glowed with the sigil of a Tank Role's ultimate skill. [ _Hallowed Ground_ ], rendering himself utterly invincible for ten seconds. He was using his body to cover them all under his bulk. She dispelled her dragon form. Friendly Fire was on.

Diving for the safety of his wings, he let her under and pressed his wings down air tight to the ground as the spell went off. The blistering roar of an inferno, the screams of the dying and her own former party met their ears. Ten seconds went by and the sounds of destruction slowly ebbed away.

"Merlin, was that level of destruction really needed? We managed to complete the quest. The majority of the villagers made it."

Draconis's voice rumbled through the air. He did not let his wings up. They could not see the land behind his body shield. Merlin's cold voice met their ears.

"Yes, due to the presence of players. I can [ _Mass, Greater Teleport_ ] everyone including our dragon friend here, back to the Dravanian homeland."

There was a harsh grunt of agreement from Draconis.

"Please do."

Lucia had railed against it, but the others shook their heads. She could see them all clearly with her vision despite the lack of light. Before she could ask why, she heard Draconis speak with a heavy heart.

"It looks like the Arcology War out here now. Nothing but charred bodies and ash."

As Merlin teleported everyone away, she caught a glimpse of the surroundings as Draconis's body was transported a fraction of a second before she was and she choked back a sob.

" . . . it looks like Earth . . ."

* * *

 **On that depressing bombshell . . .**

 **Reader Reviews!**

* * *

 **Rmarcano321:** Enthusiasm?

 **17konbro:** I endeavor to flesh out as much as possible without slogging down the story line.

 **Guest Number 1:** You're welcome!

 **Guest Number 2:** I know right? A character that can't be given a challenge can get boring real quick.

 **MadDan90:** Was this enough Lucia screen time?

 **PervySageChuck:** Ew, gross. No amount of Lysol is changing that . . .

 **Awayuki:** Indeed . . . though one could say not living to see the events of the future may be a mercy . . . twisted as that thought may be . . .

 **Dimension Distorter:** Oh when Draconis finds out about Esdeath, well . . . you'll all see . . .

 **GenerationZero:** Oh the Elven King arc I have planned? Muahahahahaha! Cough. Hrm. YES! Yes I do have plans for that.


	37. Chapter 34 Departures and Encounters

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Disclaimer and Notes**

* * *

A few things have been brought to my attention of late.

I realize all too well that Draconis can seem "too perfect". It has always been my intention that his character will be addressed. Yet I fear that much of it relies on his interactions with his wife Artorias. Bear in mind. That his flaws don't easily show because he has mainly been involved with high end social interactions. He is used to and familiar with this.

Lucia was to be his foil. The one calling him out on things, Perhaps I have not been descriptive enough, perhaps it was skimmed over by readers who brought this to my attention.

He fights his inner demons by ensuring others don't go through the same. The negative term for this is "Coddling". It may seem like helping, but . . . well you'll see.

On with the show!

* * *

 **Chapter 34:** **Departures and Encounters**

* * *

Draconis stared at the fire after the Adamantite team Pioneer had exchanged information with him. Something inside him burned. Someone was toying around with him now that he had earned that title . . . the title of Martial Lord. He resented that title now more than ever.

"Damn my competitive spirit. Ever since the game allowed me to move and walk again like a normal person . . . I relished in it. My escape from the bitter reality." He clenched his knees with both hands. "I get too absorbed in the moment. Too lost in the heat of battle."

He had not gotten the information that he really wanted out of Pioneer. Damn his good natured tendencies. He was playing a Holy Knight. All his special powers and abilities demanded a positive Karma Score to operate at their finest. As much as he wanted to just charge in and demand both answers and aide to help the Dragon Kingdom and Draudillon, he simply could not bring himself to do so. Not when nearly a full half of his strength relied on him remaining good.

In a sense, that was selfish. Terribly selfish.

Night was upon him, yet the Dragon Ascendant's ability to forgo sleep, drink, and food now mocked him. From the shadows of the ger, Akame and Kurome both appeared and sat in front of him with concerned frowns.

"Lord Draconis? What's troubling you?"

A low growl that was decidedly _not_ human came from his throat. A growl of annoyance and thinning patience.

"This is all taking too long. As entertaining as some of this has been. As enlightening as some of this has been. We should be back at the Dragon Kingdom already with forces prepared."

Akame and Kurome frowned as Draconis ground his teeth. Akame took a tentative step forward and looked him in the eyes.

"Lord Draconis. You're worrying us. Surely you trust our Guardians enough to hold the lines until you return?"

Her words struck a chord with him and he stared at her for a few moments before realizing what it was he might have implied however indirectly. He placed a placating hand on her head and fluffed her hair a bit, making her groan and back up a step.

"I'm sorry Akame. I'm on edge. There is so much of this New World that we find ourselves in that we don't know. As confident as I am that we are powerhouses in this new realm. It also puts me on edge and worry. Overwhelmingly so. Things that seemed like concepts and background noise are now very much real and such powers make me . . . make me afraid."

Akame and Kurome glanced at each other both in surprise and concern. Fear?

"What do you mean?" Kurome knelt before him with a genuinely curious expression. Her dark black eyes glanced from one of Draconis's eyes to the other in concern.

"The gods and any other primordial force that would take interest in our affairs. Yet in my competitive nature with the duel with Go Gin, I have attracted the attention of someone that I have a feeling runs with an amassed power well beyond the norm. I already have had encounters with powers . . ." He ran a hand to [ _The Finery of Valhalla_ ]. "Powers that I can never hope to be victorious against. Powers that could crush us all with utter impunity should they wish it. The best I can hope to achieve is not reaping their wrath."

Akame and Kurome shuddered at the thought. His eyes were deathly serious and had a faraway sheen as if remembering something. Akame joined her sister before him and placed a hand on his shoulder, shaking him gently, the act brought his focus back on them. With empathy in her eyes she gave him a hard look as she stood now that she had his attention.

"Draconis . . ." Akame dropped the honorifics and titles. He looked up at her standing before him. "You placed your trust in us when we all talked about your influence in our lives. I don't expect perfection, honestly I think you are trying too hard. You've only taken a rest twice since we arrived here in this New World. Once the day we arrived, and another the night you received word that your brother . . . your kin had passed away."

Kurome stood before him as well and nodded vigorously before speaking in support of her sister.

"Sister is right Lord Draconis. Please, rest a day, go see Queen Pendragon. One or two days will not harm us or the war effort to help Queen Draudillon and her people."

A part of his heart was warmed at their concern. They were the closest to him in regards to his NPCs and their settings. As his guards from the shadows, they knew much about his inner turmoils and struggles. Especially now that game background was now reality.

"It touches me to hear such concern for my well being." He stood and embraced them both, surprising both of them. The two sibling fiends did not struggle against the gesture of affection. "I thank you for the gesture, but I will see a respite at the end of this endeavor. I send missives on schedule, though I suppose this past one was a bit late. A long, drawn out conflict is not good for either side. The goal is to bring this to a conclusion in no more than a month."

The two fiends frowned in dissatisfaction with his answer. When Draconis got it into his head to do something, he stuck with it. He was stubborn like that. In many ways it was a strength, but it was also self destructive. He was becoming too focused on seeing the task done before resting himself. Constant meetings, never sleeping, only eating as a facade to maintain. True, no combat had been terribly strenuous much less deadly in a sense, but he had not gone to see Queen Artorias since their arrival.

True, they could make use of a [ _Gate_ ] spell or he could have flown physically, but flying there in the literal sense was dangerous due to the unknown amount of time it could possibly take. Draconis did not leave to see Artorias despite wishing to deep down inside because he felt too much responsibility in seeing things through properly.

A workaholic.

He would likely not see her unless forced to do so, but they did not have the heart to make him. The delays with getting reinforcements made the time to go see Artorias, but he feared that by doing so he would lose track of time with her presence. Or worse . . . feel guilty about it by spending time with his wife while those of his forces could not see their own families. They knew deep down that Draconis would feel like he was gallivanting while his subordinates were working to ensure his wish to help Draudillon and her people.

He was not an armchair general and hated idle time. He would get stir-crazy when not doing something to keep his mind occupied. Sitting back and letting others do the work never rested well with him.

They both knew this, but could not help but stand aside and let him keep working. Draconis returned to the tome he was reading over about the economics of the world. He had the chalk pad, but he preferred actual books, something about them gave him an odd sense of satisfaction; the turning of a page, the closing of the cover when finally through . . . He was reading over the information Todd had gathered together from what they had learned from the Dragon Kingdom and their neighbors.

Akame pondered his timetable.

"A month my Lord? You really think we can decisively drive them back so quickly?"

Draconis merely nodded as he continued over the material rather forced on him by Todd.

"Indeed. We are not invading their lands in return. Merely driving them decisively back to their original borders. A counter invasion has not been a part of my plan from the start."

Placing a bookmark in the pages, he closed the tome and withdrew a scroll from his inventory's void. Unfurling the parchment, he laid it out between the three of them. A rough, 3 dimensional map of the Dragon Kingdom rose from the material.

[ _Guild War Strategic Map_ ] was an item any guild that participated in the Guild Wars events received. As a registered ally of Avalon, Draconis possessed one despite his guild consisting of only himself as its main member. Guests on a roster did not count.

The map displayed the units that Draconis had deployed from The Lair around the Dragon Kingdom and their overall status. To the northwest of the village of Tildeus was The Lair within the north western mountain borders with the Slane Theocracy and the Katze Plains. To the far east of the range was the Drake and Wyvern Rider Territories. He knew that somewhere among those mountains was Phantasmagoria's All The World's Stage, but since he had not personally been there, it was not on the map.

The capital of the Dragon Kingdom lay to the east of Tildeus around two weeks ride via horseback. Here, a large, substantial number of his forces were deployed. Cecilia commanded a fairly sized company at Tildeus. Other towns and remaining cities also showed a garrison reinforced by his PoPs. All in all, he had around 30,000 Troops deployed. Somewhere around just shy of a third of his PoPs.

It was as he had been planning out this assistance to Draudillon that he truly understood the saying, "Generals think in logistics." As a man that had fought in trenches he had focused on the man-to-man issues of the fighting and while a certain level of logistical issues did cross the table from time to time, it had not been his primary concern. Yet as a leader of tens of thousands, it was abundantly clear.

 _Even with magic providing food and water and other drink to the troops and the extra going to the needy people of the Dragon Kingdom, the refuse and other logistical concerns like housing and materials are an issue. Though the generators of The Lair are working and can produce a sufficient amount of resources to maintain a respectable level of self sufficiency. It is suicide to provide assistance indefinitely. Getting them back up to speed as swiftly and efficiently as possible without leaving them crippled by doing so is my greatest priority._

Truth was, he was actually burning through his treasury to provide for those he gave his word to. Not necessarily in money, but in resources. He was a hoarder in the game and so he had even kept copious amounts of lower level and mid level materials. Wood, stone, metals, and other resources had been piled high and deep into his vaults. A lot of it was for cosmetic things he found homey for his sanctuary in the game. Now they were being used to rebuild homes and businesses. Reconstructing certain monuments in the capital and reinforcing broken or worn down defensive walls. Creating quality weapons and armor without being overwhelmingly powerful for those volunteering to defend their homes.

The drain would be utterly staggering in many people's eyes. Another reason to keep the war short and succinct. In the past few weeks he had provided more than a thousand tons of collective stone, wood, and metals to the relief efforts. He glanced at the closed tome by his side of economics for the Dragon Kingdom and surrounding nations as penned by Todd after his talks with Draudillon and her council. A council reformed with the assistance of the now Duke Whitepeak.

While his overall stores were not depleting at a rate that would truly worry him, his recent smudge with Todd over the overlooked form of currency reminded him that he could not farm resources as he once could in YGGDRASIL. Even if it was possible, for how long? How long would it take the resources depleted to recover . . . assuming they even would. Even though he appreciated the concept of farming and agriculture, he was no farm hand. He was not a Druidic class either, so Nature specific magic was not something he learned among the spells at his disposal.

"I hate logistics . . ." He planted his face in his hands and groaned in aggravation. Akame and Kurome frowned even as they tilted their heads to opposite sides in confusion. Draconis cleared his throat and pointed out locations their troops were at.

"Do you see the markers that the scouting teams Samael deployed on the map?"

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **Strategy Room**

* * *

"Yes, we see the units you have deployed Commander Samael, yet I still believe them to hard to be believed."

All around the eastern sides of the kingdom, between the capital and their borders with the Beastmen Kigndoms were striker teams of six homonculi soldiers. These were supported by a plethora of augment squads and support staff. The map was littered with pieces representing the teams and all of their deployments currently in active status.

Normally, Samael knew he would be using the [ _Guild War Strategic Map_ ], but such a powerful magical artifact was not wise to display here when there were factions against receiving outside aid from a stranger, much less of complete foreigner. Therefore, many pieces represented the number of teams within a specific radius of each other. Currently, they had 500 Teams of six, so 3,000 men and women in the field as active defenders scouting the wilds east of the capital.

Some of these teams worked in tandem as others worked in full fledged legions of 30 strong. The beastmen raiding parties thus far encountered had been putting up stiff resistance, but the initial results were promising. Losses had been incurred, but those heavily wounded or even killed were treated and raised, much to the shock of everyone at the table. That their support forces had multiple healers capable of the vaunted [ _Raise Dead_ ] had sent waves through the nobility and Adventurer teams.

For Baron Whitepeak, it only solidified his belief that Draconis Brightblade was not a man to be trifled with and that spurning the man's benevolent offer of aid was suicide. That he would have his healers raise even basic soldiers from the dead was astounding. Not that they had incurred terrible losses like Adventurer and Worker teams did fighting off the raiding teams they encountered.

After one particularly fearsome encounter with a party that possessed an Alpha, the legion that faced him had lost a third of their numbers before killing the leader. However, the fight had lasted two hours and the slain members had been taken back to medical tents and camps where healers set to raising back to life those slain.

Or at least, that's what it seemed like.

The homonculi soldiers all looked similar save for the styles of their hair. For all they knew, they were merely replacing lost troops with those in the reserve ranks. Yet from what Whitepeak had gathered from the few times he had heard from Draudillon about the man, it seemed so unlikely that he would callously send his soldiers to the front lines without going himself.

A detail that he did notice as the pieces were arranged on the map, was that if a unit suffered losses, a different numbered unit would take its place. Logic followed that these troops were not the same soldiers exactly even if they did look so similar.

Not being able to hold back his question any longer, he raised a hand just enough to signal to Samael that he wished to speak. The gray haired dragon blood nodded his approval.

"Forgive me Commander Samael, but my curiosity begs the question. What of your dead? Are they given rights and buried back at your lord's stronghold?"

Those gathered about the table nodded in agreement as they also were curious. They were foreigners. To be buried in a land not your own was haunting. Surely they would not exhume the deceased at transport them home afterward? It was a constant fear for those sent out to fight, to never return home and instead be left to rot in a land not your own.

Samael wore a solemn expression as he answered. "They are given honors as appropriate to soldiers giving their lives upon the fields of battle. They are taken back to my liege's stronghold to spend their rest. Their teams are reorganized before setting back to duties."

Draudillon, who had spoken at length with Todd, knew more than what Samael was letting on. She knew of the magical nature of the homonculus troops Draconis commanded. Todd had put it in general terms that they were brought back from the dead through an exceedingly complex ritual, thus allowing them to learn from mistakes and failures and still retain their strength. Such a thing had stunned her so badly that she had dropped the drink she had been sipping on at the time. The very thought of having what seemed like an endless army of troops equal to the ranks of elite Adamantite Adventurer Teams shook her to the core.

She knew that the information that she had learned from Todd would have to be taken to her grave. If such knowledge about her benefactor became widespread, it would cause international upheaval. The True/Fake Dragon Lord Queen had a fair idea as to overall strategy they were making use of.

The way she understood things as they currently stood, the forces scattered about to the east were acting like a screen. A kind of network to intercept and take stock of raiding beastmen like a fisherman would utilize his net for a big haul. Such a tactic would normally not be feasible. The logistical side of things with food and drink much less the manpower was not something the Dragon Kingdom could afford.

Yet Draconis's forces were more than able to perform such duties with little issue. They all were well provisioned. It was mind boggling.

 _If their Grand Seer, Chronos had not explained the difference of planar existences with Deidre and I, I would have demanded to know just how he was able to put forth such a force. Yet knowing this is all the more stressful. Who would have thought that they were possibly from another realm. A realm so much stronger than anything we could imagine. A playground of gods . . ._ _no . . . exalted heroes._

Learning that Draconis's stronghold was a plane like that of the celestial realms or infernal realms was staggering, but when she thought on it, it made a certain amount of sense. The level of power he held was enough to take her breath from her lungs. How else would such a powerful being possess enough magical items to make a king feel like a pauper?

Still, if he was pledged to the Queen of Avalon, what did that mean for the land he was currently separated from? She shook her mind from that train of thought to refocus on the meeting.

One particular group of scouts had run into an abnormal group of beastmen yesterday and their reports had sent a ripple of concern through them all. That unit had been decimated, their healer retreating with her fellow members bodies via magic to prevent arms and armor and bodies from falling into enemy hands. The group had been lead by a Beastman War General. A beastman only thought to have been a nightmarish rumor to the people of the Dragon Kingdom.

Alphas of raiding parties were nigh impossible for humans to defeat, much less kill. The War General status had sprung up from the -admittedly at the time dubious- reports of a young group of adventurers at Mythril Rank who had seen an Alpha beheaded by the armed and armored beastman for angering him. That single sighting had not been enough to convince the Adventurer's Guild to officially declare the status of that class of opposition.

But the healer of this surviving group brought back a clear description and even somehow had managed to ingrain the leader's very visage onto parchment.

He stood seven feet tall, and wore bloodied, spiked armor of adamantite! The war axe he hoisted was double sided and had to weight at least fifty or more pounds. They could not see his face due to the war helm's visor, but the six eye slits in it glowed with dark green glow that unnerved those looking upon it. At his hip was a sheathed hand and half sword in an ornate sheath that defied the appearances so commonly found with beastmen tribe raiders.

The tail that swayed behind him was that of a wolf. Thick and bushy, but stained with blood. A short cape tattered and torn in dark, shadowed green swayed in the winds. Bits of fur and bones used as ornaments could be seen about the armor, though no one could tell if it was his own, or just lined pieces of his armor. The helm had motifs representing a roaring tiger and had a plume of fine hair draping down the rear.

Gathered around him were Lynx like beastmen and other wolfmen as well as one or two winged beastmen of the avian variety. They too were armored, though not quite like he was. Yet the armor and weapons concerned Samael. If he was concerned as the Commander of The Lair's Guardians and overall military might, then Draudillon was too.

Her keen hearing had heard him mutter and curse under his breath. "Damn. So the leaders are finally coming out to play. Sooner than expected."

Samael made the mental note of coordinating with Chronos and the other Guardians in how to respond to this new threat. Part of him wanted to test these new threats himself, but he knew that it could possibly be overkill and tipping their hand too soon could prove fatal. After all, a group of six that could take out three teams of Level 30 Homonculus soldiers were not the same power level. No, these probably would need the higher tiered Sanctum Guards to deal with these threats.

The Sanctum Guardsmen were level 50 Vanguard Knight class NPCs of varying races, unlike the Homculus soldiers. Some were centaurs, others were dragon blooded, most were elves and hound archons. Samael knew that if he needed to do so, he could call up 2,000 of these fighters if needed. He dared not call up the whole order however. It would leave The Lair vulnerable.

"Baron Whitepeak." Heads turned to Samael as he spoke. "Give orders out to your men and those of the Dragon Kingdom that under no circumstances are any of you to engage this group or ones like this one in combat. We will take them on."

There was an edge to his voice at those last words that brooked no arguments. Baron Whitepeak nodded calmly in spite of his concern. These new foes had bested three groups of warriors equal to adamantite adventurers three to one! He dared not imagine what would happen to the troops and conscripts and volunteers under his command if they had been the ones to encounter them.

"Very well Commander Samael. We shall do as you say."

The two men nodded and the meeting came to a close for the time being. One by one the officers and nobles filed out of the room until only Whitepeak, Draudillon, and Samael remained within the meeting chamber.

Draudillon moved to the table's edge and ran a index finger along the edge of the hardwood table. She eyed the figures strewn across the map thoughtfully. Despite her powers and dragon blood, she was no military leader. The stratagems and tactics being employed and discussed went straight over her head. She much preferred to remain at peace and watch her people flourish.

What her position had instilled into her however, was the understanding of hierarchy and power figures. Of logistics and the importance of having the good opinions of the citizenry. Something that she had been slowly losing due to the invasion. Samael had a good head on his shoulders in military matters, and his peers seemed to also have a great understanding of war and how it could be affected by situations she would not have predicted. If there was one thing she did know however, it was morale.

The collective spirit of the people fighting could be a deciding factor in any conflict. As such, she had proposed going out on a daily basis in person to encourage and inspire her nation's people. Samael had questioned the decision for the sake of her own safety, and she had answered his concerns by stating that his own presence by her side would serve to kill not one or two, but three birds with one stone.

Firstly, it would encourage people and give them hope and a certain amount of solidarity. How many rulers truly walked out among their people and offered encouragement and succor with their own hands and with their own words instead of by proxy? Very few. Such a move would let her people understand that she was truly aware of their plight because she was among them, witnessing it herself.

Secondly, Draudillon heavily doubted that other than Samael's peers and his liege lord Draconis could best the man himself. Much less harm her if he was near. While it would keep him from a portion of his duties and responsibilities as Commander, the army that he lead in his lord's absence was so well polished and operated with such efficiency, that a few hours out of a day were not going to drastically effect day to day operations.

Lastly . . . and to her, the most important from her perspective . . . it showed the people that they were together in this fight against the beastmen invaders. Showing a unified, cooperation and understanding between the leaders of their respective camps spoke volumes to her citizens that they were not alone. It also showed that their benefactors also understood their plight and despite not being of the Kingdom, they were there to assist and offer aide. That she actually rather liked Samael during their time working together was a bonus.

She fought a slight heat in her face at the thought.

Ever since she had broken down and literally bawled her eyes out in her study with Samael as a witness, she knew that the incident was just about as intimate for her as baring her person to him. A leader was not allowed many of the emotional freedoms of expression that the common man or woman was. Shedding tears and breaking down was heavily frowned upon at her level of leadership, especially in public. The fact that Samael had said nothing, but merely wiped away her tears and let her exhaustion finally claim her, had touched something within her heart.

When she had awoken to find that he had set her upon her couch in the study and left her a pitcher of cold water and a glass for when she came to was an appreciated gesture. Never mind that she was certain that she had not had a blanket over her person. The only article of clothing she had not been wearing upon waking were her shoes. After drinking the water and setting aside the blanket that had covered her from the chill in the room, she discovered that he had left all the paperwork he had been working on upon the desk and locked the door to the study. She had not found him within.

Upon stepping out of her study, she found the short haired Kurome just outside standing as a sentry. The otherworldly katana wielder had smiled and wished her well before stating that if she was up and about, Kurome would end her guard duty and return to Draconis. The girl had been considerate enough, _not_ to phase into her own shadow and actually walked away for the sake of Draudillon's nerves.

Such considerate gestures when she had grown jaded with the pedophiles only motivated to assist her for the sake of gazing upon a child's likeness lifted the pall of gray over her existence. They cared for and treated her as an individual. A leader. And for Samael . . . a lady to be treated as such with respect and dignity.

She found herself favoring him bit by bit . . .

Pushing aside _those_ thoughts for the moment, she gestured to the northern mountains that lay claim to the Wyvern Rider territories and beyond those . . . the Baharuth Empire, where Lucia and Draconis had departed to in order to requisition additional aide. Honestly she was not expecting much. This was more due in no small part to her understanding out how Jircniv, the Bloody Emperor, viewed her personally.

* * *

 **Adventurer's Guild**

* * *

Deidre and Marko stood in the plaza of the training grounds for the guild. The constant swish of a sword and grunts of exertion were the only things heard from the sole occupant of the grounds. Cerebrate swung his sword over and over. Sweat beaded off of his brow and into his eyes, yet he ignored the sting of the salt. His arm and jaw had been healed, but his pride was destroyed. When he had been taken from the castle courtyard, he had passed out from the pain.

Upon waking, he had thought it some kind of terrible nightmare, but the sluggish feel of his arm and the phantom pain in his jaw were all he needed to realize that the beating he had received had indeed been real. He had demanded what Martial Arts had been used against him, yet no one could answer him with any answer other than, "There were none".

His incredulity had been cut off when the master of the Guild's building had entered with a missive containing a sternly worded admonishment and worse yet . . . a loss of rank.

Cerebrate had made an utter fool of himself and been utterly thrashed and exposed for gross misconduct and worse of all, pedophilia. Such accusations would have been heavily investigated normally, but when the word of the Queen was one of the testimonies in addition to several others in higher up positions also being exposed due to it as an aftermath investigation . . . the Adventurer's Guild had a reputation to uphold and his actions had brought a dark blot upon it.

It was no secret at all that the Queen's new benefactor rather loathed the Adventurer's Guild yet had enough sense of mind to still work with them. Yet the damage was done and they had lost a lot of reputation due to it. The people worked with Draconis's personal forces more than the Guild or its members. When Father Yoland of the Church had also praised and lauded Draconis and his people, the shift of power and support had changed as well.

In other words, the citizens of the Dragon Kingdom were becoming ill disposed to anyone calling themselves an Adventurer, and favored Workers more than them. It was jarring and insulting. Yet Marko and Deidre did not hold it against the people. Truth was, they were more inclined to abandon their ties with the Guild and become Workers themselves. If it meant better survival with Draconis's military and having a clean reputation, they did not mind at all.

Still, Cerebrate _had_ helped them get their starts, even if it had not been purely altruistic, the fact remained that without Cerebrate, they would not have made it as far as they had.

It was this sense of responsibility that found them watching as Cerebrate poured himself into his rehabilitation like a madman. He paused to eat and drink and rest, but other than that, the man had a focused, fiery purpose in his eyes now that seemed to defy description.

Whether or not that purpose was benevolent or not was another question entirely.

 _He didn't use a single thrice damned Martial Art at all? No man is that powerful! I was under the effects of multiple Martial Arts including_ [Haste] _! How can a man be fast enough to move that quickly and hit that hard?!_

He swung his sword of Orichalcum.

 _My reputation!_

Another practice slash rent the air in front of him.

 _My rank!_

A thrust pierced the imaginary target before his eyes. He held his stance as his teeth grinded together. The image of Draconis imposed itself over everything around him. Next to him was Draudillon, in her adult form. The two of them were smiling and talking, she was happy.

 _The Queen . . .!_

A resounding clatter of metal upon the hardened, packed dirt echoed throughout the training plaza as he slammed his weapon into the dirt in anger. Off to the side, Deidre and Marko shook their heads in understanding.

For all of the man's boasting, Cerebrate had a bad habit of wearing his heart on his sleeve so to speak. He could not hide his emotions or the sources of them well. Especially against someone like Deidre, who was the scout of their team. Marko was actually the older man between the two of them by five years and that time had made him a bit more perceptive of the goings on around him.

It also helped Marko that he had been humbled some time ago about his hubris against a Sam-Arh-Eye of Bakamatsu Genpei. Never mind that it had occurred in a much more subdued venue and not in front of such a high profile audience. He could relate to the sting of being humbled, but at least he could say that his opponent had been somewhat hard pressed. Draconis had no such difficulties against Cerabrate and as such, took their leader back to "the basics" so to speak.

"Damn it all!" Cerebrate roared to no one in particular. "Who the hells is he to be so beloved by people he's not even known for a year! What the hells have I been doing!"

Cerabrate glared at the training dummy before him and instead of seeing a certain crimson haired Holy Knight, he saw himself.

No fancy armor.

No high class sword.

No friends.

Just a bright eyed youth wanting to fight evils where they may have lurked and being a hero to the people. He clenched fists tight as he cursed under his breath. Realization slowly sank in and he grit his teeth in disgust at what he had become.

 _When did I lose sight of what I wanted to do from my childhood?! Perhaps . . . no . . . I need to get back to my roots. My original goals . . . I need to start over. Damn I truly have made a complete ass of myself._

He began to see just what truly irked him so much about Draconis Brightblade.

It was not that he possessed treasures and equipment even he did not dream of acquiring.

It was not that he had garnered the favor of Queen Draudillon.

What it truly was . . . was that Draconis embodied everything that Cerabrate himself had once aspired to be. A beacon for the people regardless of their class or life. A virtuous knight that others could rally to and be inspired by. It was that Draconis had attained the benchmark that he had once placed for himself and beyond. But he had taken it even farther and it had shown Cerabrate how low he had truly fallen. How off track he had become and how it had festered into arrogance.

 _I am the problem . . . and that needs be changed._

Off to the side, across from Deidre and Marko, stood the mage and cleric of their party.

"Damn that red haired knight. He's ruined our reputations!"

The magic caster bit a thumbnail in annoyance and frustration. Seeing Cerebrate like this was infuriating. He had joined Crystal Tear to work alongside the man he considered to be worth looking up to. True, he himself was young, but he was able to cast both [ _Fireball_ ] and [ _Lightning_ ]. Two of the strongest spells possible.

Their cleric sighed and hummed in thought. He had personally gone to see Father Yoland after the whole duel with Draconis and the man of the cloth sharply berated him for not stopping such an event from occurring. The two men had talked and the topic of Draconis's validity and the reasons as to why the good Father Yoland so vehemently supported the man.

Yet again, Yoland began to ramble on about the angel. One Chronos according to the man of the cloth. Honestly it disturbed him just how fanatical the man had become.

"Calm yourself Tinta Wyndau. Our leader did rather make a fool of himself. Let us consider it fortunate that the healers were able to reattach his arm and heal his jaw. I have no doubts that Cerabrate will overcome this defeat. Say what you will about that Brightblade fellow, but his forces _are_ getting results where we have all struggled."

Tinta Wyndau glared at the healer of their team in unveiled contempt.

"Easy for you to say Clare Eik. If I get the chance to show that bastard up I'll take it."

Eik groaned and proceeded to close the book he was reading from and lifted it high.

"OW!" Tinta squawked loudly as the spine of Eik's book smashed into the top of his skull. "The hell's was that for?"

His shouting did not go unnoticed by the others present. Cerebrate was the only one to ignore them as he kept swinging in practice. Deidre and Marko glanced their way in curiosity before realizing it was only Eik chastising their newest member again. Marko had not really heard what the young man had been yelling, but Deidre clearly had. She frowned, her ears drooping a little.

With the support from Draconis's forces and the encouragement of Master Mage Todd and Commander Samael, she had forgone her head scarf when within the city walls and her reveal of being of elf kind had been surprising, but not as hostile as she had feared. Perhaps it had been due to the fact that other than the homonculus troops, there had been the appearance of centaur and elven kind among Draconis's troops.

Admittedly, she found herself self conscious on a different level. The elves she met bearing the sigils of Draconis's order were refined, handsome and beautiful in equal measure be it the men or the women. They were also well taken care of, free to voice their opinions on plans and other matters about how to get their mission done. The humans and homonculus soldiers alike respected them and even freely communed and spent free time with them as friends.

Such a thing was a stark difference from the oppression the Elf King forced upon his own kin.

Yet when Tinta and Eik discovered she was actually an elf, Tinta had called her out. The young man was the son of a fallen noble house of the Dragon Kingdom. She could sympathize with the loss of his family to the beastmen, but she was no beastman. She had lead them safely through many missions together, yet this was obviously not enough. Their healer, Clare Eik had admonished her for hiding her true nature before giving her platitudes and thanks for her part in the team, but it did not change the immediate look of momentary contempt.

For her, that was all she needed to come to her decision. Deidre was done with this farce of an Adventurer's Team. She was only here now to pay her respects to Cerebrate as a leader before requesting the permission of Draudillon to become something akin to a personal guard. She knew it was rather presumptuous of her, but she honestly did not know just how much good she would really do helping Draconis's army.

An army she was discovering, were all at their own levels of power or higher. She grit her teeth bitterly at the previous hubris she had once felt as the elite of the Guild.

 _How arrogant of us. To believe that we are the special elite when we knew full well there are monsters and other nasties that would kill us like a person would swat a fly out in this world. It is no small wonder Lord Draconis sees us with a level of contempt after what Cerebrate did. We're the level of his force's frontline soldiers! His grunts are stronger than we are._

As she was turning to leave, Tinta called her out with a definite heat in his voice.

"That's right long ear! Turn and run. That's all your kind are good for in the end!"

Deidre fought the urge to turn and put an arrow between the kid's eyes. Her anger flared, but mostly she was hurt. Hurt that they would so easily turn on her when the truth of her blood was in the open. Did all those life and death experiences mean nothing to that damned brat? She bit her lip so hard she drew blood. The trickle of crimson vitae dribbled down her chin as she fought not to cry. Her fists clenched so hard her knuckles popped as he nails dug into her palms hard enough to also draw blood.

"Deidre." Cerebrate's voice made them all freeze. Not once had he spoken to any of them since he had begun training himself again.

Not trusting herself enough to turn to see his expression, she instead kept her eyes straight ahead.

"Yes?"

"You were right. I should never had challenged that monster. Go and do what you must. Thank you, and I wish you well."

Trembling at both her own emotions and his own thanks and blessing to leave the team, she nodded and rushed from the grounds. It seemed like the lose had done something to get through to the man after all.

Marko watched her go with a sad, yet understanding expression before turning to Tinto with a fierce glare. Marching over, he picked the young magic caster up by the collar and slammed him against a pillar.

"The hells you get off telling Deidre that?! It's due to her Talent that we've done as well as we have!"

Nonplussed by the assault, Tinta returned the glare with equal fervor.

"Anyone could have had that Talent Marko! It's wasted on a long ear like her. Why the hells are you getting so worked up over it?" A brief flash of realization came across his face before it turned to a sneer. "Don't tell me that Heaven's Spear Marko Sealbrand fell for a long ear?! You did didn't you! Hahahaa! No wonder you were always hanging around her. Did she make it wor . . ." Tinta never got the chance of finishing his taunt as Marko smashed him across the face with a powerful right hook.

The blow knocked him to the ground where he spat blood.

"Fucking grow up you brat!" From his place in the dirt, Tinta rounded on the spear fighter, his hand alight with a spell promising pain and possible lethal injury.

"Like hells I will!"

"ENOUGH!" Cerebrate bellowed as he approached them all. The disgraced Holy Lord pulled Tinta to his feet with a stern countenance that he normally reserved for those they fought against to the death.

"Thanks lea . . . GWAAH!" Tinta was cut off by harsh slap across the face by Cerabrate himself. Eik went slackjawed in shock as Marko whistled loudly at the act. "C-Cerabrate?"

Cerabrate was completely irate at this point. "Tinta, I took you onto Crystal Tear for your magical potential, but this whole incident and its backlash is my fault. As much as I cannot stand that man's contempt and bearing, there are no two ways about it. He is absurdly powerful and I acted the complete fool. I have no choice now but to own up to my faults and try to close these inconceivable gap between us. Deidre did hide her true nature from us, but she still helped us greatly. So much so that I made the egregious error of believing us the strongest of all. To make light of her contributions is an insult to us all. Her leaving is her right as I spurned both her advice and her value in our team. Such an act is not appropriate for a leader."

He turned and made way to the cleaning rooms to wash the sweat from his person.

"If we are to redeem ourselves and by extension, the Guild's, then we are going to have to work harder than anyone else of the Dragon Kingdom. Any real man would do the same. I dug ourselves into this fiasco. Now we have to dig ourselves out of it."

Marko was stunned. Had his defeat truly changed the man so much? If so, perhaps there was some hope for them yet.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

 **Village Square**

* * *

Draconis had finished packing his equipment and gear before making his way to meet the rest of their group. Foresight had all gathered at the center of the square before Lucia and his return. All throughout the night he had not seen any sign of the youthful squire leaving the village. Of course, he had been studying all night. Pouring over the intricacies of the economic and political junctures of the Dragon Kingdom and its neighbors both the Wyvern Rider territories and the Slane Theocracy.

He had let Akame and Kurome watch out and they reported nothing of true concern.

Lucia however, appeared with a smile that hinted at something she was rather pleased with.

Hekkeran Termite mussed his hair a bit before speaking.

"Well, none of use saw the boy leave. Do you really think it wise to keep going here? Don't you need to be back at Arwintar for some arrangement with Emperor Jircniv?"

Draconis nodded but chuckled at his concern.

"I do, but I can return quickly enough. Though it looks as though Lucia found something of interest."

The group turned to her and her grin only got bigger. Arche shook her head in mild annoyance before Imina spoke up.

"Well, don't keep us in suspense, what did you find?"

Lucia pointed out toward the direction that her camp had been on.

"The boy made his way past my camp last night around the early hours before the farmers were up. He traveled with no pack and if it wasn't for my lack of lights last night around my camp, he probably never would have left."

That detail made Foresight wonder how she ended up spotting him with absolutely no light at all. Instead of questioning her on the detail, Hekkeran chalked it up to a magical item and just nodded in agreement. Arguing the details would only waste time when the boy had an obviously large headstart getting back to where ever this place was. The least they could do now was make up for the lost time.

As they set out, the Adamantite Team Pioneer watched them go from a distance.

"Boss, is it wise to stop following them?"

Vinny asked even as his ears twitched. Bartholomy nodded firmly as they turned to make their way back to Argland. Vanessa, for one, did indeed not mind in the slightest that they were leaving them be. The aura and intensity of Draconis's gaze had reminded her too much of a Dragon Lord. The prismatic orbs unnerved her to no end. Arene had honestly been intrigued and was disappointed to be leaving such potentially revolutionary knowledge untouched. Victor shared the same concerns that Vanessa did. This was beyond their purview and was becoming far too politically charged. If there was one thing no adventuring team wanted, it was to get involved in political games and machinations. Never mind those of dragons.

Bartholomy felt an obligation to at least take the job from the Dark Puppeteer Dragon Lord and in his opinion, they had fulfilled their end of the job. They had learned a good measure of things about Draconis. His mindset and tenants for one. Another was that he was obviously well equipped, far better than they dared imagine. For a different point, he was obviously dedicated to his Queen. Bartholomy felt like trying to persuade the man from the woman's allegiance would not end well for those trying to make him switch.

"Yes Vinny. I believe so. He's the kind of man that sticks to his code and his loyalties. So long as we don't tread upon those, we should be fine. Best not to anger a man like that."

Nodding in final agreement, the group began their trek back to the Argland Council State.

* * *

 **Re-Estize**

* * *

Tina and Tia both scurried along the fields of another Eight Fingers's plantation for growing Black Dust. The cheap, highly addictive drug that infected a vast majority of the kingdom. Due to its minuscule signs of withdrawal, many thought it to be harmless enough, yet for pharmaceutical specialists, despite the lack of them, those in the know with healer connections knew that this drug shrank the brain in size. They were working with Evileye this night as Princess Renner herself desired a bit more done before moving on Eight Fingers in full.

Normally, they would have done a mission like this without the others in Blue Roses, but this plantation was not the same as others. It was one of the larger locations in the kingdom and as such, more heavily guarded than the smaller counterparts.

Fortunately, Evileye was not like Gagaran, she knew the hand signals they had developed from their days as assassins. In that way, Evileye was so much better suited to this kind of work than even Lakyus was.

 _Something's wrong here . . ._

Tia signaled as they came to a halt at the plantation's perimeter. Tina nodded as they scanned the area before thinking about moving forward. Evileye's hands moved and they looked off to the right of the nearest shack.

 _Over there, by the grain shack. The guard looks like he's sitting while sleeping._

The trio cautiously made their way to the night sentry. He was sitting upon one of the benches and his hands were in his lap, loosely grasping the lantern he had between his feet on the dirt by its handle. Nothing looked out of place other than his position asleep. But they had regular patrols so how was this guard not noticed and reprimanded yet?

 _Wait . . . look at his neck._ Tina's hand signal drew their eyes closer to the man's neck and they saw bruising clear around it. The signs of strangulation. A garroting.

Their eyes widened in surprise and paranoia. Creeping back into the overgrowth nearby, they began furiously signaling each other.

 _Someone other than use is here!_

 _Who is it? Who would risk this?_

 _Have we been noticed? Is this a trap?_

"Hey! What're ya doin' ya slob! Oy! Answer me!"

The yell of a man startled the distracted trio as a fresh guard rounded the corner and shined the lantern he was holding toward the dead man. As he suddenly began to come to the realization that his fellow guard was dead and not truly sleeping, a sharp whistling sound skimmed by Blue Roses's hiding spot and struck the new guard in the neck. Their eyes widened in surprise as they spotted the object.

A dart like object protruded from his neck, a dark green feather decorated it. Tia and Tina recognized this kind of weapon. A tranquilizer dart. Not terribly uncommon in their line of work, but that meant that whoever it was had been watching this location. Which meant they had been seen looking at the body.

Yet this unseen person had obviously just helped them. They had not been shot when they had approached the dead guard like this man. Said guard fell to the ground, his lantern by sheer luck, did not spill its oil and lit wick upon the grasses or worse, in the edge of the Black Dust plant fields.

Tina and Tia glanced about at a wicked pace, trying desperately to find the mystery dart thrower. Yet all they could see from the direction that the dart had flown from were the fields of the Black Dust plant, and a scarecrow . . . wait!

The twins focused in on the scarecrow and they noticed something off. The erected bird deterrent had rather fine clothes and no straw could be seen poked out of the shirt or pants . . .

In a blur of movement, the scarecrow drew in its arms and spun, the cloak billowed in the moonlight before a figure dropped down from the pole and into the illegal crops below. There was barely any rustling as the figure hustled through the crops.

Evileye frowned behind her mask. She could sense magic at play here, strong magic at that. All of her unlife experience pointed to magic items and experienced individuals. Whoever this was was easily at adamantite levels of power.

 _Let's not be hasty, if they're here to disrupt this plantation like we are then they could be allies. They did not target us._

Tia and Tina gave her an incredulous look but after a moment of silent contemplation, they grudgingly agreed. None of them had caught on that the scarecrow was actually whoever that operative was. Never mind that who it was had not targeted them when they had been wide open.

 _Should we keep going, or . . . ?_

There was a shared look of concern from the twins. Both of them were wondering how they could have been careless enough to not notice such a detail. Yet in spite of this concern, they were curious. Who was that person? This was too large a location for a single operative, no matter how talented. How many others was that person with? Why were they doing this?

All of those questions were enough to convince them to keep going. With this new card on the table also came the potential of new allies. Or at the very least, acquaintences. If they were out to stop Black Dust from spreading in some manner, then they had to have some kind of good motivation if not respectable moral codes. Such people would be valuable in the fight against Eight Fingers would they not?

A collective nod from all three of them saw the trio of Blue Roses creeping deeper into the plantation grounds.

At the center of the grounds, the Crenshaw "Needle" McMobley growled at the man tied to a chair. His lovely young wife trembled and cried at the blood splattered about the table he was forced to sit at. They were "playing" the Knife Game. Which Crenshaw was actually pretty talented at. But whenever he was forced to repeat his questions, he would nick the man's finger. Each refusal to answer or lie would see the nick grow deeper until the finger was cut right off. Currently, the unfortunate man had lost three fingers, his ring, middle and pinky digits were scattered about the table. The wife was held back by a few of his boys.

Too bad they were all forbidden from touching her, but it was the upper crust's orders. Didn't matter in the end, this fool was going to get knocked off the moment he spilled. Yet for some reason this one had a lot more guts than the last schmuck that had gone through this. Crenshaw was actually pretty impressed by this latest victim of his. The man growled, screamed, cursed and glared death at him, but did not cry and simper like others. He could tell if this guy made it through this and got away then he'd be back to kill him if he found him.

Not that it was going to happen mind you. This guy would be gutted and quartered as an example to those who would try and exceed their station in the organization. The woman was just unfortunate to get involved with this guy, but she was still important as one of the nobility.

A hard knock at the only door into the room drew everyone's attention. The dim lantern light that sifted through the opaque, dusty window of the door revealed a shadowed figure on the other side.

"What in da hells is it?! I said no bargin' in!"

"But Needle! There's a group out 'ere deman'ing yer person."

The group shared a mutual look of confusion. Who the hell was here to see him this late at damned night?

"Grr . . . a'ight! Dammit!" He slammed the knife into the man's hand, pegging him there. He screamed and cursed his being most violently. The woman shrieked and cried.

Crenshaw "Needle" McMobley spat on the floor as he shoved the door open, knocking the messenger on the other side down as he did so.

"Blitherin idiot. Get up! Git yer arse up!" he gestured angrily at two of the stronger men present with a serrated dagger. "You two! Wit' me!"

The men trudged to the open air foyer of the plantation to see three tan cloaked figures. He frowned as he took in the sight of them. Around them were five dead men. One had his knife in his throat, another had his arms cut away just below the elbow. The third was one of the women thieves in the group and she had a dagger in her back where the heart would be. The fourth of the dead had his legs removed from the knees and his chest had his own hand axe buried in his chest.

He could not recognize what might have caused the last man's death. He lay face down, the back of his head completely blown away. Gray matter and blood and bits of skull bone were scattered all over. All the lackey's present were huddled here and there, away from these three people. The ground immediately around them lay barely perturbed.

From what he could tell, these three were extremely skilled. He noted no signs of heavy breathing, nor did they appeared ruffed up in the slightest. Were these assassins sent by the higher ups? Was this an inspection squad? Damn the fuckin higher echelons demands, the current batch of Black Dust was not ready to be harvested yet.

"Yeh? What you lookin' fer?! If yous got nuthin, then get on."

The central figure spoke and they were surprised. It was a woman's voice that echoed throughout the foyer.

"Your operation for Eight Fingers ends this night. You may either surrender peaceably, or face the ferocity of the Howling Wind of Avalon."

McMobley could not believe his ears. Who the hells were these idiotic scragglers to challenge the might of Eight Fingers when the Royal Family and the Adventurer's Guilds could not?

Spitting upon the ground they stood upon, he pointed threateningly with a second dagger he drew from his belt.

"Oh? Think ye can threaten the likes o' us? Who're you ta claim such a ting?"

A pair of strangled cries sounded from behind McMobley and they turned in time to see the woman and the man they had in the room being carried up and over their heads by two other tan cloaked figures. They both jumped over them and landed behind the three in the foyer, leaving several members of his company slack jawed. They had just jumped fifty feet in distance and twenty feet in the air and landed like cats. The woman and man were set down in the middle of the five mystery people.

"Needle" McMobley gaped. How had they gotten in without a sound?

"Well done you two. I take it our other guests are on their way?"

Mobley frowned at this broad's words. Other guests? Did they have reinforcements on the way? This could be bad. Where the hells were the alarms? His question was partially answered as a sixth member arrived from beyond them. This one seemed to blow in like the winds their proclaimed to be like.

The newcomer answered her question.

"Ma'am, the trio of Blue Roses is on the way as we speak. I made sure they saw me." The tan cloaked mystery infiltrator spoke softly.

Damn it all! Blue Roses?! The Adamantite Adventurer team of Re-Estize? He needed to kill this maggots quick before they got help.

"That tears it! Kill'em!"

The woman screamed in terror as the man clutched his bloody hand and cursed them. The men, realizing finally that they vastly outnumbered this group rushed them as they drew daggers, knives, crude swords and axes. Some of them hefted short spears while a few of them merely rushed in with clubs and other blunt instruments of death. The lead cloaked figure scoffed lightly as they closed in.

"Squad . . . weapons free."

The entire group reached inside their cloaks and suddenly men began to drop like flies. The whistling howl of blades slicing air met ears of those not instantly slain by the initial attacks. Those in the back began to slow in shock as those closer to their intended targets died in bloody gouts of gore.

Throwing knives flew from the cloaked figures's hands like water from a pitcher. Each of them throwing blades ranging from daggers, to hatchets and oddly shaped discs of pointed steel. Each throw and movement of hands ended a targets life as they found necks, eyes, hearts, and even mouths for those letting loose a battle cry.

Mobley was utterly stunned. Fifty men dead in a blur of death. Ten men by each one of the cloaked members of this hit squad. Only their leader had never moved, never threw a weapon. The other four had done all the work. Each of them formed up as a out facing four point cross around the man and woman as their leader apparent stepped forward. He still had men, but they were shaken by the ease that this group dealt death. Were they affiliated with Six Arms?

"A-are yous Six Arms?!"

The leader of the group scoffed in offense. "That pathetic collection of scum? Please, have some class."

The woman's cloak fluttered to the side and he and the rest of his men swallowed. A long, wooden object with metallic accoutrement was gripped in her hand. 44.45 inches long and weighing in at just a hair over nine pounds, it sported a tri-edged spike at the end that sat underneath a hollow metal protrusion. What was that? Then a thought light up in his head and he shuddered.

He had heard the rumors of something shaped like that from their branches in the south. From the Empire of Bakumatsu Genpei.

A firearm.

A "Demon Stick" or "Thunder Tube" in other regions of the continent for the roar and near instant, bloody death that came after whenever those weapons from Bakamatsu Genpei revealed themselves on the battlefield. Even their greatest agents had never been able to infiltrate far enough to find much less see the plans to craft such powerful weapons. They were the weapon of boogie man stories in the underworld. Turning common farmers into warriors that could fell even Adamantite Adventurers with ease without hardly any training at all.

She blurred out of existence before he felt a pain in his neck. As he began to choke on his own blood, he glanced down to she the woman knelt below and in front of him, the weapon jabbing him through the throat. The tri-edge spike twisted, tearing his neck to shreds before it was withdrawn from his dying person.

"You aren't worth the cartridge."

The rest of the men began to turn and flee with the sight of their leader being killed with absurd ease. What few men trying to escape did not realize was that Tia, Tina, and Evileye had already figured out the events here and as they tried to flee, they were killed swiftly by the vampiric blades of Tia and Tina or the spells of Evileye. The group from Avalon made particular note of Evileye and her spells.

"Well well . . . it seems Blue Roses can handle themselves quite well."

Evileye and the twins warily eyed the woman who had moved so quickly, so quietly that Tia and Tina were almost ashamed to call themselves ninja. They had witnessed the display of flying weaponry from this leader's team and had not seen anything like it. Normally throwing weapons were backups or parlor tricks.

" _A clever and fancy way to disarming yourself. Why would you throw away your weapon? That's stupid."_ Gagaran's words echoed in all three of their minds, but this had not been just "disarming" themselves.

Evileye took the spokesperson role as neither Tia nor Tina enjoyed being the spokeswoman of their team.

"I am Adamantite Team member Evileye of Blue Roses. Who are you and what is your goal here?"

The weapon she used disappeared behind the cloak again.

"I am Cathari of the Howling Winds of Avalon. Well met, Evileye of Blue Roses."

The trio swallowed heavily. They had only recently discussed Avalon and its Queen of Knights with elder Rigrit. How did they already have agents here?! Evileye had only one thing go through her mind.

 _Oh crap . . ._

* * *

 **Out in the Plains of the Dragon Kingdom**

* * *

In a small camp, an adamantite armored wolf beastman sat upon a boulder. The six slit visor of his helm radiated an eerie cold green glow. Around him, four others gazed out toward the direction of the capital of the Dragon Kingdom.

" _ **So our Master's old nemesis has arrived as he thought he would. So far we are not impressed."**_

He hefted the war axe over his right shoulder and motioned to one of the winged beastmen to his side.

" _ **Go, take what news we have for the Master back to him. He will be pleased to here of this development. Gather the other War Generals. We have work to do. HAHAHAHAHAAHHAAA!"**_

* * *

 **Reader Review Time!**

 **WOW! It's been awhile since I updated . . .**

 **Dodges veggies and pitchforks . . . okay okay I get it! Yeesh.**

 **Mario:** No, he actually cannot [Raise Dead]. That spell he has to make use of a magic wand that will allow him to cast the spell. As an Overlord evil undead with no "Cleric" levels he cannot cast healing magic, much less resurrection magic. The wand allows him to, but it has limited charges.

The whole "Raising" Shalltear isn't even an actual spell. It's the guild system where NPC's of set levels can be brought back and "reset" via in game currency. In Shalltear's case, the 500 MILLION Gold. Good gods. Also, the aftermath of the Cocytus vs Esdeath fight is not concluded yet.

 **UndeadLord22:** It will actually bite him again later on.

 **17konbro:** Most people in the whole medieval setting did not generally live past their 30s much less 40s due to poor living conditions. This does NOT mean they did not eat well. Contrary to popular belief, peasants ate rather decently compared to nobles, but disease and poor health and lack of medicinal knowledge generated poor health and higher death tolls due to illnesses.

Modern medicine and health studies and the availability of food and lack of need of hard, harsh labor at the young age when adult hood back then was around 11 to 13 is a large difference. I assure you, six feet at 15 is astounding in young men. You are an exception, not the rule.

The average height of a man today is between 5ft. 9in. To 6ft flat. Most men do not get much taller than that. This is among hundreds of thousands of men.

Having lived around the world and across several states in the US. Six foot is rare. I am 5ft 10in. Most people I meet and work around are less than 6ft.

 **Omegadramon2:** The Men of the Kingdom Arc will be going in full shortly.

 **Lutemis:** So you'd rather I re-write everything most people and readers already know that Ainz has done? That'd be several extra chapters of "Oh, we've seen this already, why is he bothering?"

Everything so far including the Lizardman Heroes Arc happens within two months . . . TWO months of them arriving in the New World. All the chapters thus far are what they have be up to during the same time frame as what Ainz has been doing up to the Lizardman Heroes Arc. Now at the very end of it is when the "canon" changes and Ainz is involved.

Ainz is NOT inconsequential in my story. But the changes and his role won't show until the establishment of the others in the New World is made solid. This will be shown within the next several chapters.

 **Wacko12:** No, Merlin is not one of the members of Avalon in the New World. The only members of Avalon in the New World are Artorias, Mordred, Gareth, and Lancelot.

 **MadDan90:** Here's the next chapter! Tag, you're it!

 **Fanguy59:** Muahahahahahhahaaaa! You wanna cookie?

 **Doraemax:** The Dragonsong War is now very much a real thing due to the lore from YGGDRASIL becoming a reality for those involved. It's the same as the NPCs becoming real along with all their background.

 **Crosswald:** It gladdens me to see dots being connected even if they are not all accurate, or are they? I'll let you stew in those hypothesis of yours. EVIL CACKLING!

 **Dimension Distorter:** I wrote in an actual flashback of YGGDRASIL because I agree with what you have said in your review. Kugane glosses over the how's and what's of the developers of YGGDRASIL earning the ire of players as being "shitty". Granted, there are PLENTY of ways developers are shitty, look at the whole gaming loot boxes, pre-order craps, and others "service" games.

 **Evilsod:** I explained Draconis's ability to speak the ancient elven tongue. It's the backgrounds he wrote into his characters. All backgrounds of all things in YGGDRASIL become real and that is canon. Ainz wrote in the Albedo's background that "She loves Momonga" and guess what? She obsesses over him. So much so that she actually has shown a dislike and growing hatred of "Ainz" as far as his taking of the name for himself. She wants to just love Momonga, not the Ainz they all worship.

In the talks with Jircniv, he really should have bowed and the nobles in attendance muttered about it. His pride showed by not bowing, even by taking a rather arrogant tone with him.

His own virtue and righteousness is a flaw itself when under set circumstances. They just haven't appeared in the fic yet due to my jumping perspectives between Avalon and the Dragon Kingdom/Draconis.

Draconis is a character archtype of the "flat" character. A character written to not change in leaps and bounds like others in this fic will do. He is a kind of "benchmark" a type of character written to be the benchmark and foil that others will either grow into. Or fall by the wayside as a part of their own development. Draconis is written as a kind of constant, a steady existence regardless of what goes on.

He's like the Gandalf of Tokein's works. He never really changes that much. Yet others eventually reach his level and some even surpass him in certain regards. See Aragorn, even Sam and the other hobbits. He is like Aslan of the Chronicles of Narnia. The others around him rise or fall.

I can easily see why Draconis is either liked or hated. That's up to you, but he is what he is.

 **Generation Zero:** Thank you for the review and I am glad you are finding my attempt of fleshing out the world bit by bit pleasing. It's no perfect by any means, but I am glad you enjoy it.

 **Guest:** Thank you for dropping in!


	38. Chapter 35: Tricks, Trust, Faerie Dust

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Author Notes and Disclaimer**

* * *

Overlord is owned by Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

* * *

 **Chapter 35: Tricks, Trust, and Faerie Dust**

* * *

Hekkeran Termite and Roberdyck were both grumbling under their breath as Imina lead their group through the underbrush. How in the hells was it so damned _thick_ here? The two men could not recall how many briers had stuck them or torn rips in clothing. Imina had laughed at them and told them to train in ranger proficiency.

The area in which they were trudging through was heavy laden with massive amounts of overgrowth and thorny patches of natural deterrents against intruders. Imina's Ranger skill [ _Woodland Stride_ ] allowed her to naturally, and gracefully bypass most natural choking overgrowth as if the plant life parted ways for her. She could extend that grace to one other member of their group and Arche was the recipient.

Behind them, Draconis and Lucia made careful steps and followed close enough to be in view or hearing range, but not close enough to allow their whole group to fall victims of the same ambush. They had been at it, following the very faint trail of the boy, Michael to where ever this sanctuary of the mystery abductors was tucked away. How long had it been? Two hours? Three?

They had all been through rough terrain before, but this was getting out of hand.

"Gods damn it Imina, how much farther?" Hekkeran muttered just loud enough for her to hear him. The violet haired half elf gave him an annoyed expression in return as she motioned off a rather rude salute.

"I don't know Hekkeran. I only know that we'll see it when we get there."

As the words left her lips, she turned to find herself in front of a huge lake. Stopping just short of walking right into it, she seized up and tottered at the edge before falling back on her heels. Sighing heavily in relief, she turned to warn the others but the words died on her lips.

"Guys? Termite? Roberdyck? Arche? Anyone?"

Turning back around to face the lake again, she noticed a small glimmering object on a islet farther on. Glancing about, she could see the shores of the lake far to the left and right, but how? How did this lake get here? How did she not notice in through the brush? What was going on here?

"I really don't want to swim. Please don't make me swim." She muttered as she clutched her arms around herself. Damn the Talent she possessed that made her far less likely to drown. She'd been utterly embarrassed in the past by an incident with swimming. When that monster had attacked her as she had been floating in the lake . . . Imina shivered at the memory. She had managed to escape, but ended up entirely in the nude without her bow and arrows. Not even her dagger had been spared the depths of the lake and she dared not to venture back with . . . with _whatever_ that . . . that _thing_ had been.

" _ **In the beginning . . .**_

 _ **The world was divided into Nine Realms . . .**_

 _ **The realm of men, Midgard.**_

 _ **Vanaheim, home of the Vanir.**_

 _ **The kingdom of the Aesir, Asgard.**_

 _ **Then, the land of the bright elves Alfheim.**_

 _ **The land of the ice giants and other giant kin, Jotunheim,**_

 _ **Muspellheim, the realm of fires and cinders along with their giants of flame and chaos.**_

 _ **Svartalfheim, the land of the dwarves.**_

 _ **First of the worlds and the origin and coldest of lands, Niflheim.**_

 _ **And the finally, Helheim, realm of the dishonorable dead ruled by the goddess Hel."**_

The sudden and ephemeral words that met her ears made her draw her bow and notch an arrow as she frantically glanced about for the owner of the voice. Spanning the entire surface of the lake, an image appeared depicting lands she had never beheld.

A freezing, white and cold expanse of lonely country side, untouched, unspoiled by the hands of men. Despite the beauty of the place, a bone numbing feeling of solitude and isolation abounded. From this land, a rivers of melting frozen land flowed into each one of the next realms. From it, were roots to a tree.

This tree, so massive its roots, that engulf the horizons, branched out and spread its tendrils into the other realms, connecting each other inexorably to the same central point. A single, mighty colossus of a tree that took Imina's breath from her lungs. She collapsed to her knees, bow and arrow forgotten as she took in the spectacle before her.

"What in the name of the gods . . . ?"

* * *

Hekkeran Termite stood in front of what was the merchant family home he had abandoned for the sake of adventure and the desire to see the world before he became a Worker. Yet the windows showed not his siblings or his father or mother. They showed sights beyond his imagination. The depths of the underground labyrinths of Svaralfheim of the dwarves laden heavily with gemstones and other precious metals and ores beyond description made him drop the twin swords and stare as his reflection was shown through countless thousands of facets.

The dwarves drank heartily and sang boisterously as they crafted weapons and armor and other metallurgic wonders.

He knew that he was separated from the others, but if he had to guess, they were seeing their own images as this disembodied entity spoke to them.

" _ **Each of these realms laid claim to the respective races which dwelt there.**_

 _ **Yet all races knew of the roots which granted life unto them all regardless of time or place."**_

* * *

Roberdyck knelt upon the grounds just outside the temple where he had found his faith so many years ago. Yet this place was not the same as what he had first encountered, for outside the building lay a massive landscape filled with molten lava and pyres of flames countless meters high. The heat was sweltering and he imagined this to be a kind of hellscape, yet there were entities among the flames! Men and women of hardy constitution and fortitude who reveled in the heat.

A people that despite these flames and the furious chaos it brought, ended up creating many of the various natural landscapes and phenomena that influenced and brought life to the world as a whole.

Roberdyck himself was not so ignorant as to believe that fire could only destroy, for it brought life as well, but this much sheer flame and brimstone took his breath away. In direct defiance of everything he knew, the roots of that giant tree in the distance remained firmly in place, not even scorching or singed despite the flames of the realm of Muspelheim.

" _ **The tree of life and origin. YGGDRASIL."**_

* * *

Arche gazed, wide-eyed at the sight of the Asgard, the land of the gods, the martial traditional Aesir, and that of Vanaheim, the Vanir, or the Aesir's contemporaries and masters of everything fertility, magic, wisdom, and what's more, the ability to see the future.

The buildings seemed to meld with the nature around them even as some of their architecture seemed to clash with it. She could see no beings or entities, but she nearly fainted at the auras her eyes took in. The magic of gods, Tier X.

She was grateful that such a sight was not of a person, the sheer magnitude of the auras from the buildings and fortifications alone nearly made her vomit in nausea even at this distance and just from an image alone. An agonizing migraine pounded all over her head. Yet for all the pain, she tried her best to soldier through it as the vision shifted.

Gasping for air like a woman drowning, she fell back on her haunches and watched the scene shift to the countryside of a nation she did not know of. In the distance, she laid glowing blue eyes upon the tree Yggdrasil and felt her jaw hit the ground at the sheer size of it.

" _ **We are but children of one of those ancient realms. Denizens of Alfheim once held in high regards even by the Aesir and Vanir alike. Who art thou to tread upon our doorstep?"**_

* * *

Lucia and Draconis were separated as well. Lucia growled in annoyance. She never like the Fae or their quest lines. Too filled with mischief and circling around the bush, their rewards often did not justify the problems with the effort needed to finish them. Drawing her spear from her inventory, she readied herself for the inevitable problems about to come her way.

"Damn fairy types."

Draconis sat upon a stump as he found himself surrounded by wildlife of all sorts. Wolves mingled with deer and rabbits. Birds of all kinds loitered around in trees. He honestly was quite paranoid. He had suspected something, but not THIS. Fairy magic and Fae shenanigans could vary wildly from harmless fun to absolutely horrible deaths . . . he did not want to test the mood of whatever was wielding magic so strong that the whole environment around them was affected.

This level of phantasm was higher than even Super Tier spell [ _Creation_ ].

It was no wonder that even he and Lucia were affected even with their [ _Supreme Draconic Spell Resistance_ ] that could block all spells at a non-enhanced Tier VII and lower if they did not want them to.

Due to the lore he had studied with Merlin and the others in Avalon given their connections with the Fae Water Elemental Vivienne aka The Lady of the Lake, he was NOT keen on upsetting whatever Fae ripped them into its realm. More than likely, these animals were all a collection of familiars, each with a deep connection to their master/mistress.

Honestly, he felt like retreating, but if this was anything like that World Item in Ainz Ooal Gown, it would be pointless to try.

All that being beside the point, he was pretty certain that Foresight was also here . . . somewhere.

"Damn it. I got them into this, so my leaving would be absolutely damning to my Karma. Why does it have to be this?"

" _ **Because we have heard of thee, Dragon of Light. Emissary of the World Dragon and husband of Queen Artorias Pendragon, the favored lady of my dear subject Vivienne, Lady of the Lake."**_ The ephemeral voice lilted her words playfully as if admonishing a naughty child. The faint crunch of grass told him that something approached. He swallowed in apprehension as he turned to face the voice's direction.

An earth fae, short and squat, with a helm of stone and sunken granite brown eyes approached him. A staff taller than he was tapped lightly upon the grassy forest floor. A Dire Wolf trotted slowly behind him holding the reigns of a pure white mule. The Equidae Chordata was not in the least bit afraid of the predator guiding it. In fact it looked quite content and tranquil with no cares in the world. Among them, fairies flitted to and fro, scattering flower petals of various fragrances about.

On the opposite side of the mule was a giant Elder Ursa, the enormous war bear plodded along as it huffed and sniffed the air occasionally. Perched upon its back was a horned Snow White Owl, its head swiveled fully around behind it and then back again as it looked about like a sentry.

Upon the mule riding sidesaddle was a woman of otherworldly beauty. Her long, raven black hair almost glistened a deep, royal violet in the right light. Her skin was paler than even porcelain yet the complexion was beyond mortal capacity. Her willowy form swayed in time with her mount's canter. The gown she wore was shoulder-less; exposing her shoulders, collarbones, neck dip and of course, a generous amount of chest area that Draconis _very_ quickly averted his eyes from in respect to gaze at her face.

Only to be met with half open, bright lavender purple irises with slit pupils that bored into his own prismatic ones with a sharp intellect and witty mischief that made him shudder on the inside. In direct defiance of the swaying motions of her ride and her body, her eyes seemed to remain static, never leaving or breaking eye contact for a moment. This one was ancient . . . primordial.

The squat earth fae spoke and its voice was deeper than he could have imagined.

" **Heed well and bow for she that passes before thee is the Gealach of Tir na nOg."**

At that Draconis practically paled white as a sheet, his eyes widened like dinner plates, and he dropped to a knee with his head bowed.

"The Queen of All Faerie." he muttered respectfully.

Draconis remembered tales from his childhood that he found long ago in his home before his parents deaths at the hands of his brother. The legends of Ireland and Britain's mythologies. Of Shakespeare's "A Midsummer Night's Dream" . . .

"Queen Titania."

A small smile parted the Faerie Queen's lips at his quiet words. The feral part of her being took a certain delight in the respect and . . . fear she could smell off of this one. He _knew_ , even if he did not necessarily believe. He knew who she was, what she represented, and the power that she could bring to a fight, much less on a whim.

" _ **Very good Dragon of Light. I am pleased to know thou can show the appropriate kind of respect. So very kind of thee. And a strapping young man you are indeed."**_

Draconis nodded as he kept his eyes to the ground. Mentally, he was sweating bullets.

 _THE Queen of the Fae? I am in so much shit!_

* * *

 _THE King of the Fae? What kind of shit is this?!_

Lucia leveled her spear at the satyr . . . or was it faun?

He was too handsome despite the goat legs and hooves and the asymmetric antlers out the sides of his bushy green hair that more resembled a hedge than hair. His eyes were sharp and golden yellow with a hint of predatory glint in them. Yet his smile was bright and full of humor. He was too smart, there was too much intellect in those eyes to be the simpler faun. Yet he was too handsome to be a satyr. Was this what it meant by the King of Fae?

Regardless, he had managed to sneak up on her and taunt her over her shoulder from behind with a laugh and hoot. He had no accompaniment, not even his wife, Queen Titania. Where was she if not with the King?

"Damnable Oberon, King of Fae. I am in no mood for tricks!"

He cartwheeled away and his hooves tapped the root of a tree he landed by as she tried to smack him with a broad sweeping slash. This is what she could not stand about the Fae types. They just joked and jested and made fools of people regardless of race or gender. They were too whimsical and precocious and it drove her mad. They had always been a pain the rear to fight and interact with in their quest lines and now that they were real, she did not like having to deal with them. How did Avalon and Dracconis's wife deal with these . . . these pests?!

Oberon, King of all Fae let a half grin, half smirk cross his features as he squat upon the root that he landed on our of her immediate reach. Waving a hand dismissively, he chided her.

" _ **Aww~~~~ . . . you're not a fun lass at all. What's with all the violence? It would do me not a single favor to harm a hair upon your head."**_

Lucia growled in full and let her dragon blood infuse it with power. Even if he was one of the rulers of Faeries, he was still subject to the hierarchy of races. Oberon's expression changed and he shook his head in disdain.

" _ **Dear lass, a dragon you may be, but you did not start out as one . . . We**_ **know** ** _. . . and you are crossing a fine line my dear."_** His voice dropped drastically from its playful tilt to something far darker and far more menacing. His hands made the gesture of someone walking off a cliff.

His words gave her pause, they knew? She grit her teeth, her fangs gnashed together a bit.

"Your kind have plagued me since the beginning."

" _ **I will openly admit that my subjects have had a bit of fun at your expense, this is true. But have you not done the same with the Emissary?"**_

She frowned in confusion for a moment before realizing that he was referencing Draconis.

"What do you mean? What does it matter to you of all beings?"

Oberon took a seat upon the tree root he perched himself on. Conjuring up a floating image of the man, she saw the times she had gotten a good laugh out of his situations or manipulated the situation to give her some entertainment at his expense.

" _ **My subjects are spread far and wide young Lucia. A lass such as yourself may see him as a kind of kindred spirit, but his titles were not just gifted to him, he earned them. You should know this from the Millennial Dragon War."**_

"Millennial Dragon War? You mean the Dragonsong War?"

He nodded sagely, something out of place for the King of All Faerie, yet not out of place at the same time. _**"I do indeed young Lucia. A horrible conflict to be certain. Yet you show more anger and resentment toward us Fae who have done nothing so heinous to your person."**_ He waggled a finger at her and she noticed that despite his human like appearance for the most part, his hands only had four digits. Three fingers and his thumb. It was not that he had one cut off or lost, he literally only had four digits. Yet it was so natural to her that she had not noticed it until he waved a finger at her.

"If you know of Draconis and my own origins, they surely you are also aware of the issues had when dealing with your kind?"

She spoke of the quests and events of the Fae type that drove many a player batty with their riddles and games, their tricks and abuse of trust.

" _ **Indeed, we know. Yet you willingly stepped into the mire. Greedily pursued the treasures we offered freely to those who wished to brave the Fae Realms. Our realm of the night and all her splendors with no regard to the nightmares and terrors that we also are the masters of. No young Lucia, we only did what was appropriate for the rewards reaped by those who succeeded. Nothing is free dearest she-dragon. Nothing!"**_

Oberon, King of All Faerie scowled at her with darkened expression. Lucia could feel a crushing pressure that was his presence when angered even through her own aura as a Dragon Ascendant. Gritting her teeth, she cursed under her breath. Having spent the majority of her time here in the New World asleep or in seclusion, she had not really ventured farther than the Baharuth Empire, Wyvern Territories or Dragon Kingdom. She never really had encountered anything as strong or stronger than her. Even though she knew the possibility existed, she was still a damned Level 100 with Dragon Racial levels that made Dragon Lords here look like playthings!

It irked her to no end just how those written into the background of YGGDRASIL and other legends were real and so powerful it even defied her own logic.

She could feel them around her on all sides. They had taunting grins no doubt in her mind.

"Was it you who took these kids from the village?"

Oberon threw his head back in laughter. _**"Not I dear Lucia. My lovely wife grew interested and took pity upon their pathetic plight at the hands of their ruler. Young and ambitious the young blond boy may be, but he fails to truly care for the people."**_

"Yet that very act throws the village they call home into jeopardy."

Oberon placed a finger to his chin in thought before nodding, which surprised her. _**"That is true to an extent, yet those who have come to us have done so willingly . . ."**_

* * *

"So those children have entered your realm of their own free will. There was no charming or compulsions Your Majesty?"

Draconis addressed the Queen of All Faerie as he sat opposite of her on a pair of tree stumps. After being permitted to gaze upon her form and hold dialogue with her person, she had explained the events to him. Her smile was sweet, like honey, but a bit predatory like a wolf's. Her violet eyes showed the distinct tinge of mischief, yet oddly enough, a shade of longing, not for him, but of nostalgia.

" _ **As simple as it would have been, no there has been no compulsions. They stepped into our realm of their own will."**_

He thought on that for a moment. According to the legends Artorias had shared with him, the Fae were masters of word games and just blindly agreeing to anything was suicidal. They also did not let go of those they had within their realms. If you accepted an invitation, that was it, you were in their hands unless they permitted you to leave. Such permission was a rarity.

"I see. So they have no desire to return to their homes whatsoever?"

" _ **Not at this time Dragon of Light. I understand your concern for those around you, especially the younglings. It is admirable. It is rare in this world. For one to show such genuine concern for others in this world is not something many can claim. Yet I need not remind thee that not all are worth the effort."**_

Draconis could only nod at her words. She had the right of it. Even though this world was beautiful compared the hellscape of the ruins of Earth, corruption of those in power was still very real.

"The more things change, the more they remain the same. I guess it is true." He sighed as he looked up into the canopy cover with a wistful expression that was slightly clouded by depression and resignation. "That does not give me the excuse of just ignoring it."

" _ **You truly are an intriguing existence Dragon of Light. I find that oddly entertaining."**_

Draconis chuckled in self depreciation as he shook his head at the whimsical smile she decided to grace him with. He was good with words, but this was a scenario that he rather remain tight lipped with. One phrase could doom him against her powers and lock him here . . . never to see the rest of the world again.

 **AS IF I WOULD ALLOW SUCH A THING MY EMISSARY.**

Draconis felt his gut clench and soul shudder a bit at the echoing thunder of a presence within him. He knew this voice now that he had given away the clues in his words.

 _Midgardsomer . . . I would rather NOT start a fight with the Queen of All Fae. I have more than just myself to be concerned with here._

 **THE MORTALS IN THAT GROUP ARE BUT MOTES UPON THE UNIVERSE AT LARGE.**

 _Lucia is a child of dragon kind as I am now. We effectively are your progeny. She is within this web as am I!_

 **HMPH! VERY WELL. THOUGH KNOW THAT SHE IS NOT SO ELOQUENT AND MINDFUL OF HER POSITION AS YOU ARE MY EMISSARY. THOUGH YOU SPEAK WITH MY OWN AUTHORITY IN SOME MATTERS, HER ACTIONS ARE ULTIMATELY HER OWN AND NOT YOURS TO BE JUDGED BY.**

He chilled considerably at the foreshadowing in Midgardsomer's words.

* * *

Foresight had suddenly found themselves regrouped sans Draconis and Lucia. Having seen the colossal tree of the world made them all think. Each of them sat in a circle, the four of them sharing what they had seen, for it was painfully obvious that they had each been shown a different aspect of the vision save for that superlative example of a tree.

Hekkeran mulled over the sights he had seen of dwarves and their riches below the earth. Roberdyck stewed in the incredulous sight of what should have been agony, and surely would have been yet the beings of flame crafted works unlike anything he had laid eyes upon. Imina had seen true isolation in that frozen land of creation. She thought that her half elven heritage had been a lonely existence, yet a land so marvelous, yet barren of all other life was just chilling. Arche had witnessed true exalted civilizations. True homes of beings well beyond mortal means. It drove home just how little they were, how arrogant and ignorant they were. She knew from the sights her eyes had shown her that knowledge was terrifying when it was too much.

"Is this the terrible knowledge of the gods?"

Her words resonated with each of them as they pondered on that tidbit. None of them were foolish enough to believe that they were the strongest, wisest, or swiftest of Workers. Yet none of them had truly believed that anything could be so far out of reach as to be written off as literally unobtainable. These images of the fantastical opened their eyes. Washed the scales from them if one was feeling poetic, to lands and locales beyond their reach, beyond the scale of petty human concerns.

The question was . . .

"So . . ." Termite huffed heavily as he glanced about the team. "What now?"

Before anyone on the team could speak in response to his question, the sound of footfalls reached their ears. Turning to face the source, they saw young Michael.

The youthful squire was not alone . . .

With him were only what they could describe as the two "lady knights" that he had mentioned in his explanation the previous day. They wore a beautifully crafted set of shining gold armor that was a svelte as their own willowy forms. Silks lay underneath from what they could see in the joints of the protective plate. There was also the soft, subtle clink of chainmail underneath. The pauldrons were crafted to resemble leaves and the rest of the metallurgy was displayed vine like motifs with roses scattered about. Flowing from their torso armor underneath the tasset were long, mid shin length waist cloaks that were a vibrant, verdant green. They wore no helm, but their ears and eyes gave away their natures.

"Elves?"

The words of Draconis came back to their minds. His praise and study of Elvish Swordsmanship began to make far more sense than what they believed. The swords at their hips were nearly identical to the ones he had wielded in his match against Go Gin. At least the hilts were the same, though the scabbards were works of art. How did such elegant armor actually hold up in combat?

" _ **Workers of the Empire of the Crimson Emperor, why do you tread upon these lands? By the grace of one blessed with the blood of the Fae among you we do not draw our golden steel as is our right upon our lands against intruders."**_

Imina tensed at the ancient elven tongue. Her own elvish was rusty due to her utter lack of interaction with others of the second half of her bloodline. As crass as she could be, even she knew that this was an unusual circumstance.

"Sorry, but my party won't understand you. Can you speak the common tongue?"

The two elves glanced at each other before nodding. Both of them were women and nearly identical. Were they twins? If so, they were exceedingly rare.

"Very well. We shall continue this discourse with the common tongue of man."

Imina let go of a breath she did not realize she had been holding.

"What were they saying Imina?"

She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and spoke plainly, knowing all too well that it would be pointless to try and whisper anything with full blooded elves in front of them.

"They want to know why we are here. This is their realm and we're intruding."

She fairly bit her tongue to keep a more crass statement from leaving her mouth. The two elves radiated elegance. Their svelte forms taunting her half blooded body. Even though they were also female, they had subtle curves and facial construction that lent their genders to the more observant individual.

"We are here to find the children of the village who came here."

Both women turned their heads to face him in sync. The act made him step back in shock. It was like they were bonded magically. Perhaps they were?

"For what reason child of man? The younglings entered unto our realm peacefully and of their own accord."

The group frowned as a whole. So the wisps of light that Michael had seen had not been mind affecting? No hypnosis or magical compulsion? Their thoughts were echoed in their body language.

"I can understand your suspicion." Young Michael stepped forward a single pace. "I did tell you I could not show you. You followed regardless. Even your other two friends, as powerful as they both are, are also trapped in this realm until the Lady says otherwise."

Draconis and Lucia's presences had completely slipped their minds. The group exchanged glances of growing concern and trepidation. People of their caliber where trapped here as well? Where were they?

The two knights parted from each other, making enough space between them to form an entrance with their bodies as the gate posts. They gestured further into the realm beyond.

"If you so need convincing as to the validity of our claim, we would bid you all enter."

There was a definite look of surprise on young Michael's face at the two elven sword maiden's offer.

"You promise that no harm come to us."

Both women nodded at them with pleasant smiles on their faces. "We do indeed promise that we shall not deal any harm or misfortune to any of you."

Imina seemed satisfied with their answer and as such, Hekkeran felt the same. Roberdyck nodded along with the terms and began to step forward with them. Arche stayed rooted to the spot. She had done some reading back in the academy in Arwintar. Fae were not readily covered, but something about this . . . at the sly grins the two elves had on their faces reeked of tricks and word games.

"I do not agree to those terms!" She blurted out before she could think much harder on the subject. The entire collection of individuals turned her direction and she swallowed in apprehension. Her teammates were looking at her in confusion and shock. The young squire was aghast at her outburst against the elven swordmaids. Said swordmaidens merely grinned at each other before approaching her slowly. Like tigers prowling, they stalked forward with eyes filled with both a predatory gleam and curious interest. If one payed it enough attention, their footfalls were utterly silent.

"Oh? Why is our word not enough for thee youngling?"

Arche knew in the back of her mind that they would ignore her friends and focus purely upon her.

"Even if you do not harm us, your friends may. Even if we are welcome to witness, there is no promise it will truly be them."

"Oh?" Both elves lifted their brows in surprise. "Mayhap sister, this youngling is a tad sharper than the others in wit?"

The now confirmed siblings smiled a definitely more genuine smile. "She is a magic caster. Closer to the supernatural is she than even our half blooded cousin."

Hekkeran and Imina both paled a bit at the jabs at them. Had they just about walked right into a trap? Roberdyck frowned at the two elven women.

"What's going on here?"

The two elves leered at him. "So naive." One sister muttered.

"So ignorant." The other sibling cooed with sweet, honeyed tones that begged mischief.

Their voices spoke in stereo as they closed in on Arche with playful grins. The young blond backed away but not quickly enough. The sisters placed hands on her shoulders. "Very well then. In light of this youngling's insightful mind we shall change to a new accord."

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

The sounds of armor being fitted and tightened rumbled throughout the deployment foyer of The Lair. Swords rattled in sheaths, pole arms were polished. Arrows knocked and clacked in their containers and their bows were strung and fletching triple checked. A contingent force of The Lair prepared for deployment. Fellow members of The Lair helped them suit up and prepare. They were informed that this was a diplomatic deployment and to wear their full ceremony gear.

Brilliant white and gold with black highlights made up their kit and their weapons all bore magical enchantments. Pauldrons held the crest of their Lord Brightblade, the dragon with swords for wings. Those who wore cloaks bore the banner of Pendragon of Avalon. The Elves and Centaurs among them wore emerald green scarfs either around their necks or on their right forearms lined in gold threads. This and their rainbow diamond earrings enchanted with wards to keep them from falling to a broad assortment of status ailments signified them as members of The Sanctum Guard.

Level 50 NPCs that made up the elite guard of The Lair. Unlike all the homonculi soldiers deploying with them, they were custom NPCs, not PoPs.

Those that had family and close friends were either encouraging those heading out or hugging and wishing them safe journey and safe return.

Todd sighed heavily as he finished the last of the preparations. Before him on the floor were a collection of 320 coffer boxes filled with tightly packed stacks of gold coins equal to the demanded 80,000 gold. Each coffer held 250 1.5 inch diameter gold coins each. It was utterly ridiculous, the full amount of coinage alone weighed in at 55.760 pounds, just shy of 28 tons. Realizing that the Empire probably did not have the means to carry such a massive amount in a singular container, he had ordered that multiple chests be crafted to carry it all. Heck, the 250 coins alone still weighed in at 174 pounds before the box was added into the equation.

Each and every box of crafted by the dwarven masters of Biggs and Wedge from [Iron Oak] and Mithril to keep them strong yet light. [Iron Oak] was a simple, common hard wood that had a tinsel strength far beyond most common hardwoods and was still lightweight. The locks were simple pad locks with matching keys. Crafted from Orichalcum, they signified the importance of the contents, even if he disagreed with the use of the metal when the dwarven smiths had insisted on it instead of simple steel.

Each coffer weighed a mere ten pounds when empty, but could handle the strain of storing such weights within their bellies without a problem. They did not even have to be enchanted with magic to do so.

All of this had consumed a pitiably small amount of materials, but it had drained the treasury of 15,000 YGGDRASIL gold. Todd still fumed about it.

Generally, Lord Draconis was a hoarder of items and treasures, not out of pure greed, but artistic enjoyment. Many of the vast items had no real powers, nearly just as many were astronomically powerful too. Yet they were all works of art or had some kind of deep meaning or history behind them. He had even forgone many of the stronger items of the world due to their ugliness or vile backgrounds.

He remembered a the conversation he had held with Knight of the Round: Gareth some many years ago . . .

* * *

" _Draconis, you had_ [Armor of the Dragon King] _in your grasp and you TRASHED IT?! Are you nuts?!"_

Gareth had balked at the news. The body slot piece of equipment had been a God Tier item awarded for a rarely appearing questline.

" _It was uglier than sin! None of us would wear such a thing! We'd be the laughing stock of the world regardless of the power it can put out! We can craft something just as strong that actually looks good with the materials I obtained from trashing it."_

Gareth had glared at him while being red in the face and screamed frustrated murder before reeling back and Draconis had paled considerably . . .

* * *

Let it be known that when Gareth of the Knights of the Round is flustered – nay, _betrayed_ by a close friend – Lady Gareth does not _slap_ . . . or anything so maidenly.

Their lord had been decked in the face . . . hard . . .

For someone who abhorred violence so . . . she sure liked to use it when she felt the need to.

Todd chuckled slightly from the memory, he had been present as Lady Gareth had charged into the Research and Development chambers and argued with their Lord, culminating in a punch so fierce he sent him spinning and dealing a very red glaring fist print upon his face. The Queen Artorias had been laughing without restraint at the incident for a while. Lady Gareth had never quite forgiven him until she herself had managed to find a rare identical copy of the rare armor and had promptly done the same as Draconis . . . trashing it for the materials obtained in doing so.

Profuse apologies had poured from her lips at that time. Draconis had only sighed and simply told her, "I told you so."

He also mentioned something along the lines of not wanting to wear pauldrons the size of "aircraft carriers" whatever those were. Regardless of the powers the piece granted.

Setting aside fond memories for the time being, Todd glanced about at the soldiers he had gathered to escort the coins to the Baharuth Empire. Each coffer had two soldiers dedicated to transporting their cargo. Each box had two more soldiers each accompanied by a Sanctum Guard.

Five personnel per coffer may seem like overkill, but he was not taking chances with so much coinage of their own going to another nation for the sake of helping the Dragon Kingdom. Glancing over the 1,600 personnel rounded up for this trip, he took great care as to the racial numbers among them. Half of the Sanctum Guards among the number where elves with an even split of male to female. The other half were centaurs in their full regalia.

True, the centaur members could haul much heavier loads than their fellow guardsmen, but they were most definitely _not_ beasts of burden and were not treated as such. If one volunteered, that was one thing, but to force it upon them even if it was their duty? Nay, Todd knew Draconis would rake him over coals for such an act. Volunteers were one thing, forcing such a thing? Never.

A fair share of them actually had volunteered to carry larger loads for the sake of easing the burden on their peers, but due to the circumstances of delivery and who it was receiving it, appearances needed to be kept and silent visual messages delivered.

The message that other races were highly valued and treated as such. That they were not lower than humans, but equals. Damn their lord for being so socially adept and appearance minded. Not that this did not call for it. Far from it. This was an Emperor they were delivering this coin to. Not some merchant.

When they had received the two elven children when Luserina had reappeared at The Lair with their rags and recently restored ears, the collective whole of the elven and centaur and fairy community of The Lair had balked and raged at the very thoughts of child slaves, much less elven children. There had been quite of number of cries for a nationwide rescue operation by many in The Lair, but Chronos and Luserina had talked them down. Where would they be taken to? How would they provide for the extra mouths to feed without just magic? Who would watch over them? Too many conditions and not enough time to make them. They were technically at war, so taking on such an extra burden was not the wisest decision to be made.

Afterward? Perhaps. But definitely not now.

Taking one last headcount before finalizing his plan to deliver the payment on behalf of the Dragon Kingdom, Todd sighed heavily. Politics were most assuredly _not_ his strong suite even if he did understand the concept.

"Men and women of The Lair! Prepare to embark."

Their was a collective roar of acknowledgment by the gathered troops. Nodding in satisfaction, Todd turned and opened a [ _Gate_ ]. They would appear beyond the horizon as to maintain the appearance of conventional travel. The coffers were stacked neatly upon several wagons hauled by some of the finest steeds in The Lair, [ _Phantasmal Steeds_ ] were a step above [ _Sleipnir_ ] with their speed and endurance. They were neutral versions of [ _Nightmares_ ] and [ _Alicorns_ ], though flightless and not sinister in appearance like either one of their fiendish or celestial counterparts.

The [ _Gate_ ] opened and they all began to file through to the Baharuth Empire.

* * *

The Clearwater Scripture team in The Lair had heard the echoes of the denizens in The Lair when their outcries against slavery had reverberated throughout the whole of the mountain fortress they found themselves in.

"Left? I don't think we should remain here any longer. The people here are not pleased."

Amelia had a very bad feeling gnawing its way through her gut. She personally did not favor slavery, but she did not condemn it either. Left Ramrod nodded in agreement. Even though he was not that much of a thinker in their group, even he could tell that their current hosts were not amenable at the moment. If they were to leave, now was probably a good time to do so. They had been shown the various races here and how they coexisted peacefully.

There elves they had seen here were nothing like the ones that they had seen and sometimes fought against from the Elf Kingdom to the west. These elves could and would fight in the open with both sword and magic! They even worked well with their supposed diametrically opposed race, the dwarves! What manner of leader could convince those two races to cooperate . . . even sup and drink together?

"Do you even think they will let us leave? We know too much now."

One of their fellow Scripture members spoke with a biting sarcasm. She was the one who had been pummeled to unconsciousness by The Bunny after it had destroyed her crossbow. **{See Chapter 16: Arena Combat and Dungeon}**.

"Oh, come on Margaret. You did not die, though now that we look back on it that was rather embarrassing."

The auburn haired woman of twenty-one summers clicked her tongue and huffed as she crossed her arms over her chest in embarrassment. The little terror had scared the daylights out of her. Margaret was fairly certain she'd lost a few years from the terror of that demonic little bunny.

"You weren't attack by it personally Amelia, I don't want to hear it!"

The rest of the group nodded in agreement and Amelia became rather contrite at their unified opinion. But they had not seen Left get utterly floored by the Hazuki woman after they were all knocked out.

"That is true Margaret but Left was put down by Swordmaster Hazuki in a literal flash. We should be grateful we've not been treated as prisoners."

"Yet we are!" one of the others piped up.

They had not been allowed beyond this chamber and the personal chambers of Chronos Timetable, the Seraphim Empyrean they found themselves in the custody of.

They had been treated far and beyond any prisoners, but they were without any doubt confined to two rooms and little more. Chronos had been showing them sights and showing them tidbits of information that were most assuredly enlightening, but nothing terribly sensitive by the layman's view.

Yet they were intelligence operatives and as such even small details could be taken as a kind of lodestone.

It was at this point that Chronos appeared. The man had been a consistent during their time here. He had been answering questions calmly, patiently, yet never fully disclosing everything or anything sensitive like weaknesses or specific details about his liege lord. Blanket statements and other vague descriptions that were obvious signs of a powerful being.

"Good discourse is a key element of any healthy relationship, yet blindly yelling at one another yields nothing but negative results. That set aside, it is inadvisable to attempt to leave while the denizens of our abode are so riled up from the children's arrival."

While his voice was pleasant to their ears, all of them could feel the soft warning and feel the power behind it.

"If you were prisoners . . . _true_ prisoners . . . I assure you that we would not be treating you so graciously, or mercifully. We have looked past your intrusion and into the circumstances. Knowledge seeking is one thing. Be glad that you were not raiders looking for the treasures within or arsonists with no noble intent but to pillage and raid. You may leave if you but ask and promise to not encourage others to approach our home with ill intent."

The others in the group were a bit stunned. They could have merely asked to leave and they would have been allowed to? Amelia cupped her chin in thought.

"So swearing to not promote a raid or attack would result in our being allowed to leave. You are taking an awful risk in letting us go after showing the things that you have, Angel Lord."

Chronos waved off her title for him. He was not so arrogant as to claim a title for himself. "Indeed. We can be very amiable to visitors provided they are not hostile. Information can be more valuable than gold and often is in the political game. The information you have learned while here is generalist and vague. The specific details are most fantastical to most minds and as such are almost unbelievable at best. Flights of fancy at worst, or the words of delusional individuals."

It was true. Sky walkways and a forest oasis inside a mountain? Multiple races of all kinds living in peace and prospering better than humans? A bunny guardian that commanded wolves larger than war horses? An angel of the highest order living as a normal person? It was all ludicrous to any other in the Theocracy. Their words would hardly be believed.

If the Cardinals did bother to believe them, then what? If they tried to attack, this place was a natural fortress. Mass numbers would do no good within the confines of the mountain home these beings resided in. Amelia herself was fairly certain that Hazuki alone was probably stronger than even the Captain of the Black Scriptures!

She was no fool. She had heard about the losses the Black Scripture had suffered at the hands of that vampire. A wandering, powerful undead none of them had ever heard or seen. She had heard about the single magic caster that had completely scoured the world of the Sunlight Scripture's very existence.

To her, even as an unbaptized citizen, it was a dire warning. An omen most dark that the Theocracy was on the edge of a proverbial cliff. One more push . . . one more error . . . and they were doomed. These powerful entities suddenly appeared with no warning and seemingly at random, dealt more devastating blows to their power base in less than half a year . . . nay! Less than three months! Than they had ever suffered in more than a hundred years.

Now it was her group's turn in the spotlight . . . she was determined to not let her group suffer the same fate because they were shortsighted!

"Angel Lord . . . We will have to report what happened and I am sure that certain minds will call for action in response, but if we were to try and curb such action . . ."

"Young Amelia, your reasoning and mindset on the matter may be noble, but the actions of your higher ups and the beliefs that they have instilled into your nation do not match the things they practice. I have seen the contradictions. Such a thing is a deadly venom. Our people are very informed as to the mindsets and goals of our leadership. They know full well what and why they are fighting. Unlike your war against the Elf Kingdom."

His eyes narrowed upon all of them and his voice took a venomous tone that made them all back away in fear. The aura he had that once had been kind now was crushing in its intensity. It cut off just a suddenly as it had shifted as a beautiful elf maiden appeared and had the audacity to hand chop him in the back of the head with a livid expression.

They all gawked in disbelief. A lowly elf dared to strike a Seraphim Empyrean?!

"Chronos! You're scaring them! I know you are the least prone to anger out of all of us, but when you do it becomes downright apocalyptic. Calm down!"

Chronos rubbed the back of his head as he turned to face Luserina, who steamed like a bag of hot air at him.

"You're right . . . ow . . . my apologies to all of you. Still, my point stands." he grumbled as he weathered the welt now forming on his cranium. "Something you needed to see me about Luserina?"

"Indeed. Lady Cecilia wished to speak with you. Samael as well. We've discovered a disconcerting foe among the beastmen kingdom forces."

Her words made them all pause for a moment. A foe that made these paragons of power cautious?

"Very well Luserina. I'll be there post haste."

The two disappeared in a flash. Leaving the Clearwater Scripture members to stew in this new, dreadful omen.

* * *

 **Fae Realms**

* * *

Titania allowed Draconis to view the children from the village from just outside the walls of the small coven that sheltered them. His eyes could see them all rather enjoying themselves. From lessons of higher learning or even basic tutelage, to crafts and arts. Things that could definitely help them in their futures . . . if they were allowed to depart from Titania's realm.

He was making use of the spell [ _True Seeing_ ] that pierced any and all illusions and trickery. Even shape shifters were not safe from this spell of divination. Closing his eyes and letting the spell pass, he sighed in resignation. They were indeed safe and not being harmed. None of them held the signs of abuse and many of them looked far better than he had seen from what few children remained at the village.

"I see for myself that they are well taken care of. None of them show the signs of compulsions or other mind affecting spells or charms. Yet I still fear that they will never desire to see their families again. Even should they do so, the changes are too stark. Too drastic for their relatives to comprehend without going through it themselves. Such a sudden revulsion from their known kin would be devastating as it was for young Michael."

Titania did actually look a tad contrite at his words, for they were truth. _**"We will assist them should they encounter that reaction. I cannot speak for all my subjects, but we will temper their grief and anger should rejection come from their kin."**_

Draconis narrowed his gaze in thoughtful introspection. Titania smirked and took note of his skeptical gaze.

" _ **I know that look Dragon of Light. Very well. We hitherto swear not to teach or impart upon these younglings the desire of vengeance or retribution to their kind for misunderstandings, regardless of how tragic."**_

He only bowed in thanks as the view was taken from their presence. Glancing up into the canopy of the forest, he nodded once.

"Your Majesty, I mean no discourtesy, but I have obligations outside your realm of influence. I do not know how much time has past here either. I do not wish to be late."

Titania smiled at Draconis's respectful tone. Truly it felt good to speak with someone who was in the know about her people's nature and while he had not played word games with her as she had tried to coax him into, he _did_ defer to her and provide her all the respect her position was due.

 _ **It is no small wonder young Vivienne speaks well of his wife and by extension, this one as well.**_

She sighed forlornly. _**"I would rather you did not associate with that boor of a young emperor, but you do so out of a higher cause. Very well. I grant you leave of this place along with that of your associates."**_

He bowed to her, but before he could say anything in gratitude, she instantly appeared face to face close enough for her nose to brush against his own. She felt him tense and was impressed that he manage to keep still. Though he _did_ flinch and his eyes locked onto hers in shock. He was still bowing and so this position placed her below him, her face upturned. Not to mention he fought tooth and nail to not avert his eyes for risk of seeing something else. Direct eye contact with Titania could prove fatal . . . but glancing elsewhere would surely kill him just as quickly.

" _ **We look forward to your return Dragon of Light. Do bring your wonderful wife with thee next sojourn."**_ Her breath tickled his cheek as she giggled with delighted glee. **_"We would throw you both a most pleasurable banquet."_** She faded back to the mule she rode upon and her otherworldly escorts turned to leave.

Draconis remained bowed until he could not feel her presence before sinking to his knees. He was sweating heavily and he found himself hard of breathing. That last tease of the Queen of all Fae had nearly been too much. His [Ring of Everlasting Affection] glowed brightly and fiercely. The wedding band he possessed had redoubled its efforts to steel his will power to resist the charm/compulsion she had tried to use on him with her eyes. He wanted no part of whatever _banquet_ she promised him and his wife. For it promised Oberon's ire; and he had no desires to be the boy turned goat of their tale of jealousy and claims of infidelity.

"Not willingly Your Majesty. Damn it all that was too close."

He regained his wind and composure for a moment before standing and realizing that he could feel and sense the other's presences yet again. The closest ones were Foresight. Gritting his teeth, his fangs rubbed against one another in frustration as he began to make his way toward them. The confusing orientation made by Titania's influence had waned considerably.

As he approached, he noted Michael, the young squire glancing back and forth at the group of Foresight and the two elven knights that were teasing Arche incessantly. He cleared his throat for their attention, which all heads snapped to him with a speed that would impress even the fastest viper strike.

"Apologies lady knights of the faerie realms. We have received Her Majesty's permission to depart in peace."

The two knights gazed at him in displeasure at the loss of their fun, but nodded. They would not go against the word of the Queen. To do so was to risk invoking the wrath of a nightmare within her darker half.

"A shame. Very well youngling . . . we do hope to see you again some time . . ."

The two faded further into the foggy mists as young Michael followed wordlessly.

"Draconis? What was that? What do you mean we've been allowed to leave?"

Draconis shook his head, this was not the time or place for that discussion. He still did not know where Lucia was and his patience was worn down the the threading.

"Later Hekkeran Termite." He glanced about before pointing in a direction opposite of the way they had perceived themselves taking. "Head that direction until you clear this mist and do not turn back. The ruler of this realm will not be so generous a second time. I must find Lucia and then we will join you all and explain. For now, go."

Hekkeran thought to question the man but Imina cut him off with a sharp negative shake of her head as she pointed to Arche, who was breathing far harder than she should have been. Roberdyck had already noticed and was trying to calm Arche the best he could. Silently nodding his grudging acceptance, they began to leave as Draconis stepped in a different direction than them.

* * *

Lucia glared openly at King Oberon, the damnable mischief maker happily perched on a tree branch just out of lance reach. She did not dare make use of her aerial combat with so many presences around her and so little visibility. The sound of crunching footfalls behind her made her swirl about to see Draconis walking towards her. He was slightly pale and his jaw was set firmly as he approached. He looked at her spear and sighed heavily.

"Lucia, why do you have your weapon drawn?"

A growl of annoyance was her answer as she pointed up to the branch Oberon was squatting on. The King of all Fae cheerily waved at them both as he grinned ear to ear. Draconis groaned in annoyance and resignation.

"Of all the . . . I should have known. Your Majesty, we have been given leave by your beauteous wife. Please refrain from provoking my compatriot any farther."

" _ **Oh? So that's where she had gone. Very well Emissary! Good to see you lass. I do hope we can talk more later."**_

Oberon bounded away and they both could feel the presences of the countless other fae around them dispersing. With their presences gone, Draconis pitted her with an incredulous glare.

"What were you thinking drawing your weapon on the King of all Fae?!"

"They piss me off." He gawked at her reason for a full five seconds before returning her frustration at her full force.

"They _piss you off?! That's_ your reasoning?! They could have locked us within this realm at but a thought and you wanted to risk that because they annoy you?"

She glared at him full force in return. "You have no clue how much I lost in dealing with their fickle natures and stupid mind games."

Draconis turned and began to walk away from the mists. "We'll talk about this later. I have a time schedule to keep and there is no telling how long has passed since we came here. The mission is a bust. The children all came here of their own will so there is nothing we can do in turn."

Lucia balked at his words. Running up to him, she grabbed him by the shoulder.

"A bust?! The hell does that mean Draconis?!" He turned to face her and she had to brace herself from the blast of dragon presence he hit her with. She knew this feeling . . . the feeling of a superior dragon. The feeling of his Emissary position. She was offended he would use it against her. She was angry.

"We don't have time Lucia. I promise to explain later. We need to go."

She grabbed the collar of his armor and whipped him around to face her eye to eye as she glared at him without reserve. Her fangs bared at him as she snarled. She was so done with the word games and byplay. She never was one for the beat around the bush approach and eggshells. Damn that shit. That he was doing the same for her sent her already negative mood into an angry nosedive.

"Enough bullshit Draconis! Tell me what happened! A minute or two is not going to affect things that much and you know it."

He snarled in turn with her pigheadedness, his own fangs bared, his eyes changing to a burning crimson coloration.

"We are still in their realm! Time flows differently here! Now stow the attitude and let's get out of here first Lucia."

The two glared at each other in maddening silence for what seemed an eternity before Lucia released her grip on his clothing. He had not laid a hand on her, but he had stood firm and returned her withering glare in full. She spat on the ground in disgust.

"Fine. Let's get the hell out of here. I hate this place."

She shoved her way past him and he shook his head in disappointment. She had been this way during the Dragonsong War as well. It seemed she had never moved on from the YGGDRASIL days. Even though she was high up on the totem pole of Phantasmagoria, she did not like leadership positions. Especially not leading herself. In reality, it was why she always took other spots in parties, never leading anyone, but following. Perhaps that was the reason that Phantasmagoria was in such condition now? She had mentioned that only her NPC remained as one of the original members of the guild.

 _Lucia what happened to you? You were like this back then to. Never patient enough, always bullheaded and demanding everything up front. Someone who loves teasing but hates being the target of it in return._ He began to follow her with a strained patience. _I hope this doesn't bite you in the end._

As they cleared the foggy mists, Draconis got a ping in the back of his mind as [ _Message_ ] alerted him to his NPCs trying to get in touch with him.

 _Yes?_

" _Sire, we are beginning approach to Arwintar. Where are you?"_

Draconis bit his tongue. _"How close are you to the gates?"_

 _We approach them now._

" _Damn. Follow these instructions. I will see you at_ _the south gates_. _"_

 _Of course Sire._

Before any of them could ask what his annoyed expression could possibly mean, he teleported from view.

* * *

 **Arwintar**

* * *

Emperor Jircniv was roused from his afternoon nap by a frantic messenger stating the impossible. That a large collection of well armed soldiers had managed to get within visual range of the southern gates. Walking hurriedly down the halls as his Imperial Knights joined him, he took in the details from what the messengers had sent.

"All traffic near the south gates have ceased in response to this force! They appeared from just beyond the horizon. The watchers did not spot them until the crested the horizon itself. They carry banners matching the same emblem as the Scarlet Swordsman."

They made their way to the southern gates, ignoring the growing masses that had crowded together atop rooftops and the city walls to catch a glimpse of this mysterious, foreign force. As they passed by numerous citizens of the Empire, they heard the whispers and nervous words of nobles.

"What manner of force are they?"

"Are those centaurs?! Has the Dragon Kingdom fallen?"

"Are those elves? Has the Theocracy let them spread their influence?!"

The more common folk spoke with a bit more awe and excitement at the development.

"Look, look Mama! Elves and horse people!"

"Hush dear, I see."

"What manner of banner do they rally under?"

As they cleared the throngs of those gathered, Jircniv Rune Farlord el Nix bore witness to a sight he did not think he would come across.

Centaur and elves stood side by side in armor and arms more resplendent than his Earth or Royal Knights! Their golden armor seemed dull compared to the shimmering, shining gleam in the sunlight of this force. The solders guarding wagons were also in a regalia that would make kings jealous in their pure white and gold. The horses manes swayed the winds like silken flags, their skin was unblemished and contained a sheen all their own.

Standing amid them all at the center was a man in black and gold robes with jeweled tassels. Rubies glinted in the sunlight as he held a staff in his right hand of white ash adorned with various gemstones and inscriptions. In his left was a tome of enormous size with a cover emblazoned in old script and gold. Around his head orbited four gemstones of various shapes: a hazel spinel, a pink pearl, star cut sapphire, and a black diamond. Various potions and vials dangled in a fine leather bandoleer that wrapped around his waist twice. It also housed quills and ink wells, in addition to multiple scrolls and rolled parchment. He wore his hood down in an obvious sign of respect.

His hair was a mix of lavender and chocolate brown in two halves. His eyes were pitch black. A magic caster decked out in full gear by the looks of it. Even Fluder Paradyne stood spellbound before gripping his own staff so hard it cracked.

"The . . . the abyss of magic!" He muttered as his eyes were wider than saucers. Those around him gawked at the old sage. "He can't be! No! I refuse to believe it! Not one so young! What blasphemy is this?"

In Fluder's eyes, he could see the power radiating off of Todd. It erupted continuously from the man like a geyser. Tier X was the only thing he could explain as to the power that seemed to engulf all those behind the man. As if suddenly remembering or realizing something, the young magic caster placed a ring upon his finger and the very aura of his power snuffed out like a light.

Fluder Paradyne, the long hailed strongest caster of the Empire, and for some, all humanity sighed a breath of relief but was intrigued. Then he gasped as he took in the sight of the men and women behind the mage.

Ten of them held magic auras that equaled him in might. Tier V capacity! This force held more than ten people capable of turning the tides of a battle in war in this small band of warriors.

"No . . . no I must be under the trick of a spell! I must dispel this malady and divine the truth!" Fluder fled the scene, causing Jircniv to look back upon him pitiably.

"Old Man! Ugh, him and his obsession. What is he on about anyhow?"

Baziwood shrugged. He never really understood the old man whenever he began ranting about magic and whatnot. Nimble also shrugged his shoulders as he negatively shook his head as they turned to him. Not that any of them were magic casters. That realm of power was too convoluted to make sense of. Leinas Rockbruise found herself in a bit of awe at the sight of these men and women at arms.

Part of her had suspected when Draconis had made his appearance at the throne room that day and then spoken with her that he was far more than what he seemed to be. A leader? A commander? Perhaps a General of an Army? Were these people of the Queendom that they had spoken of?

"My man has not caused problems has he? I saw your Court Magician rushing back to your castle proper."

Draconis's voice drew all of their attention and the turned to see the man wearing the same uniform he had while speaking with them during his audience several days ago. **{Chapter** **29 and 30}**

"You mean the magic caster at the head of the formation? These are your men?"

Draconis smiled in good humor. "You did wish for the payment to be here today did you not?" He would not admit it, but he had quickly checked his schedule again after using [ _Greater, Teleportation_ ] back to his room at the Shining Leaf Inn. Todd was perfectly on time. He however, just about missed it due to the warped time and space in the Realm of the Fae.

"Why so many men and women at arms for mere money exchange?" Jircniv asked in genuine curiosity. As Emperor he knew it was for security, but this many armed personnel was odd.

"Surely such an amount of currency would carry with it significant weight. My man probably saw fit to ease the burden of the transfer by evenly spreading the amount to keep it easily transportable by your own men. Also, I would be remiss with such a quantity being transported."

Draconis smiled and yet in the back of his mind, he was sighing in relief. _Thank_ GODS _Todd made me read that evil . . ._ helpful _tome of economic rules and regulations in addition to coin minting. I know I'm still going to hear about this incident from Todd for months to come but still!_

Jircniv nodded in approval of both the execution and consideration Draconis was showing them. Still though . . . He also was internally balking at this development.

 _The Scarlet Swordsman actually_ had _the 80,000 gold!? Damnation! That means we've no choice but to honor my word and grant him a whole order of knights! NO . . . no no no . . . think . . . think . . . yes! Even in good faith, it would be remiss of us to not actually count out the amount. Even if he leaves a representative or two to ensure that we do not short him on the count, it would take days to count up such an amount. Even then, it would take at least two weeks to mobilize the whole order. That works!_

"Emperor? Would you give my men permission to approach?"

Jircniv shook himself mentally from his thoughts and nodded firmly. "Indeed. Guards allow them to approach, they are here on official business! Anyone who makes a hostile action against them shall be personally held responsible."

With that, the gates opened and the transported gold from The Lair and its escorts began to enter the city proper.

* * *

 **Reviewer Responses**

* * *

 **Firstly, let me apologize for the wait on this one. It would have been posted earlier, but work has been oddly hectic. Add in some family health issues and medical operations and it kind of throws things into limbo for a bit. Fortunately none of it is life threatening, but it is still affecting family life and mobility a bit. Also, I will be taking a bit of time to see my grandmother out of state over the next few weeks. I will be working on the next installment but I honestly do not remember if she even has internet . . . hmmm . . .**

 **Anyways!**

 **Reader Reviews**

 **MadDan90:** Well, it's out and hopefully before you crash for the night Lolz.

 **RagingCajun:** Glad you're enjoying this still!

 **OmegaDramon2:** A few things may get added into Sebas and the maid. Also into the whole of the Men of the Kingdom Arc.

 **Guest:** Thank you.

 **Dimension Distorter:** Thanks for that. Yeah, Cerabrate is one of those characters that I had a hard time debating with myself over. "Do I kill him? Do I make him a villain? Do I redeem him?" That had been on my mind for some time over the course of this fic's development.

 **UndeadLord22:** No, Avalon has no reunited with The Lair yet. Both factions have troubles at their doorsteps and must contend with those first. The Argland Council State will be making moves, some subtle, others . . . not quite so much.

 **FanGuy59:** That cookie tasty?

 **Generation Zero:** I'm glad that you've noticed that about Draconis. His virtues can and will get in his way and in the way of his friends too at times. No, Draconis is most definitely NOT that good at micromanaging. He trusts his NPCs to cover his weaknesses . . . or at least his laziness . . . lolz.

I'm glad you like the changes being done with Cerabrate. Like others reviewing about him. I had a bit of a hard time deciding where to take him.

Yeah, it has taken me a bit longer than I would have liked to unveil this guy as the opposition for Draconis and co. Heh.

 **Rmarcano321:** Tell you and spoil it? Never.

* * *

 **This chapter has been brought to you by lots and lots of Mountain Dew, sushi, and stir fry. Not to mention shortbread cookies . . . I reaaaally shouldn't be eating those but damn if they aren't tasty! Ooh cookie. Nom om nom . . .**


	39. Chapter 36 Mirror Reflecting Darkly

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Author Notes and Disclaimer**

* * *

Overlord is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is licensed by YenPress.

Due to the length that this fic is getting to be, I'll be making notes of reference points at certain moments so it is easier for those who would like to to get a refresher on certain topics or points of interest in the plot whenever they get referenced. Thanks!

* * *

 **Chapter 36: Mirror Reflecting Darkly**

* * *

 **Arwintar**

* * *

As the escorted tribute from Draconis passed through the southern gates of the capital of the Baharuth Empire, crowds had begun to gather to witness the proceedings. Draconis himself watched from beside Emperor Jircniv with a rather concerned eye on his troops. Personally, he did not feel that this level of escort was truly needed for such an assignment. He understood the numbers for delivering the goods, but the level of gear was too much.

The ceremonial honor guard uniform and regalia was all Relic Tier and made of finer stuff that what he'd seen from the majority of people he had met here in the New World thus far, by far. He would have to have subtle words with Todd after this all blew over, but the damage was done. The people ooh'ed and awe'ed at the men and women of his forces. The elvish troops drew particular attention as did the centuar that proceeded towards the castle proper.

The nobility and those that sold elven slaves gawked at the magnificently outfitted elves. Many of them hurried to cover the eyes of the elf slaves they had in town for auction. Others were not so quick and those elves that managed to see the soldiers that passed by cried for help in elven.

It was only the discipline and the mission that kept the elves of the Sanctum Guard from breaking ranks and helping set free the slaves. That, and Draconis's eyes firmly upon them as they traveled up the roads.

However, Draconis did see their tensed gait and clenched a fist even as he grit his teeth. It was another incident he would have to take care of and swiftly.

 _Damn it all Todd, you knew that those two children were brought back to The Lair and that their presence would cause an uproar in the community. Why then bring the elves of the Guard to Arwintar?_

Wincing slightly as he fell into step with the Imperial Knights and Emperor Jircniv back to the castle, he had a sharp sensation pierce his mind rather forcefully.

" _Draconis! How dare you just up and warp out of group!"_

The [ _Message_ ] made itself very apparent with Lucia screaming into his mind.

 _Apologies Lucia, but the delivery of the tribute in the stead of the Dragon Kingdom was arriving right when we broke free of the Fae Realm._

There was a rather long pause before Lucia responded.

" _Alright, fine, but we're talking later. I'm sending Foresight back before me. I am returning to_ All The World's Stage _to prepare my own forces to help you."_

Uttering a mental thanks to Lucia, he cut the connection between them and marched on until they came into the courtyard. His troops were in parade formation. The horses and their wagons were all organized and off to the edges of the courtyard, out of the way. The boxes holding all of the tributary payment were spread before them, each with a soldier standing behind it.

As he entered and broke away from the Emperor and his entourage, the collection of soldiers snapped to attention with a firm, sharp snap. Jircniv and his Imperial Knights and gathered entourage of nobles and merchants watched with interest.

The man motioned to the mage of the group and the man in black and gold robes presented himself and bowed deeply. The two men merely stood before each other for a long silence before the magic caster turned and gestured to the troops behind the boxes. Each of them knelt down and opened their respective container.

Draconis turned to face them and motioned them to approach.

"Come Emperor Jircniv. Here is the tribute demanded in turn for aide being sent to the Dragon Kingdom."

Walking up to the chests, Jircniv could clearly see neatly stacked pillars of coins within each chest. The coins looked to have been polished and cleaned before storage! They even had insignia and markings of older nations no longer in existence! How much were those alone truly worth?

Several of the merchants closely examined the coins, with a few of them even plucking a handful up from their containers to ascertain their weights and authenticity. Todd understood the skepticism, but as the lead alchemist and head of magical research and development for The Lair, he was insulted. Especially when this massive amount of coinage was pitiable child's play. His students and fellow alchemists in the R&D department of The Lair had scoffed at such coinage. Truly, it had only taken them so long because many of them struggled to melt down the YGGDRASIL currency from the treasury. At least they had taken the time to go through and ensure that none of the Old Currency designs had been melted down.

It was not that the Old Currency was more valuable, but it had historical significance considering that the design of the YGGDRASIL world gold had only changed mint design three times in thousands of years.

Even their most novice alchemist could craft such simple currency. Yet that was what was needed in this situation. Todd held back the urge to sigh in disappointment as the nobles and merchants were spellbound by slipshod workmanship from those men and women under his supervision.

A mental jab jolted him from his negative musings as Draconis gave him a discreet stink eye.

" _Mind yourself Todd. I know that I have inconvenienced you, but keep in mind it was you who helped me realize what a massive mistake I could have made in just handing over 80,000 YGGDRASIL gold pieces. I am both grateful and in you and your sections debt for making me realize what a horrible mistake I could have made in my single-minded pursuit of assisting the Dragon Kingdom."_

The [ _Message_ ] made the Archmage of The Lair bit his lip and became rather contrite as he nodded softly. The loss of that much YGGDRASIL coin and what it meant the Baharuth Empire could have actually received was even more alarming. That Lord Draconis openly declared to him that he was in his debt as well as his department was saying a lot. It was humbling to hear such an admission from him.

"I apologize my Liege. Thank you."

Draconis smiled softly as he nodded and turned his attention back to the merchants as they continued to analyze the coins from the strongboxes.

"So long as you understand. Have patience. We'll see this through properly, even if we don't like all the politicking."

 _That_ , Todd could fully understand and sympathize with.

One of the merchants came over to the two of them with a gold coin in his hands. The man was of moderate height and modest build. His hair was a dirty blond and he held a bit of scruff about his chin. His clothes were well cleaned and he had a sharp eye about him.

"You are the man paying for the Dragon Kingdom's belated tributes?"

Draconis nodded slowly as he shook the man's hand. He could feel the callouses he had from coin exchange and other mercantile business. The man was accompanied by two others, a younger version of himself in terms of broad appearance, and a woman who must have been his wife, or a mistress of some kind.

"I am indeed. Draconis Brightblade."

The man nodded at the firm handshake.

"Rennescantine Termite. This is my first son, Board Termite." The younger man nodded politely and Master Termite motioned to the woman with him. "My wonderful wife Beatrice."

Draconis nodded professionally to both individuals before bowing slightly to the wife. "Well met sirs. Madam."

Rennescantine held up one of the gold coins with a scrutinizing eye. "I must say that I am rather surprised, as are my contemporaries at the sheer amount of coinage you were able to bring to our Emperor. Yet the authenticity is astounding."

Draconis held his tongue for he felt a plot afoot.

"Yet many of these coins are worth more than just the single gold that they represent with certain stamp markings."

Keeping his voice polite and professional even as his annoyance began to grow, he suddenly very much understood Hekkeran's desire to distance himself from his family business.

"Would it have been more appropriate to deliver the equal amount in bullion instead?"

The suggestion made the Rennescantine grin in amusement.

"No! Not at all sir. I would personally vouch for said values and ensure that our gracious Emperor prepare our knights as agreed upon." He nodded amiably as he spoke. "I was present during your meeting with the Emperor days prior. A man of your stature and ability is a rarity sir."

Draconis could sense this man beating around the bush, he could hear Todd behind him tapping a toe against the top of his boot in thinning patience with his dragon senses.

"Pardon my sounding a bit rude Sir Termite, but what is it you are seeking by speaking to me? Time is an enemy of the battle against the beastmen with winter approaching. As such I must be on my way posthaste once this transaction is finished."

The man only nodded with a smile that was beginning to wear on Draconis's patience. Too honeyed and sugared to be anything resembling genuine. It jumped off the cliff of professional politeness and into the chasms of being a snake in the grass.

"Only that your success is assured Sir Brightblade. Once the Dragon Kingdom is freed from the menace of the beastmen, they will need to recover from their damages. We would seek to aide them in their recovery."

Draconis could smell the greed off of this man and it made him sick. Pretend to be the good guy and helpful Samaritan but really dig what little gold the people had to spare before retreating, leaving the reeling people impoverished and reliant on indebted aide.

"I will keep it in mind, though the battle must be won first and foremost. If you would excuse me."

Draconis bowed and turned to go and speak with Jircniv. Todd bowed as well before joining his liege. As the two men left, the family returned to the strongboxes, deposited the coins they had examined back into the box, where the soldier made sure that the count was back to before their inspection before closing the lid and fastening the locks again.

Rennescantine smirked as he watched the men depart to speak with Emperor Jircniv. Oh the plans to be had to help the southern nation recover. He could taste the profit margins! So busy was he plotting in his head, neither he, nor his son or wife noticed the shadows at their feet ripple in annoyance and aggravation.

 _I'll remember you mister . . . Try and take advantage of Lord Draconis will you?!_

The shadows rippled a bit more before dying out.

 _OW! Sister?_

Enough _Kurome! He's a slimeball, yes, but that doesn't give us the excuse of removing him_ _whether or not he's within or_ _out of view of the public eye. Behave!_

 _Ooookay . . . He's still a jerk!_

Draconis took a subtle glance down at his shadow as he felt Akame and Kurome squabble a bit. It was rare for the sisters to do so and as the target of their bodyguard status, he could sense when they were troubled. Though that did not tell him what was going on in their minds. Part of him was grateful for that.

 _What are you two up to now?_

There was no response, so he mentally shrugged and continued to listen as Todd spoke with Jircniv and the Imperial Knights about the strongboxes and their locks as well as the coinage within them.

* * *

 **Enroute back to Arwintar**

* * *

Hekkeran Termite shivered visibly and glanced over his shoulder. Imina took peculiar note and gave him a questioning look.

"Just felt like death passed over me. Probably my father getting into something over his head."

Imina shrugged. Hekkeran was most certainly not his father by simple virtue of his Worker status. Arche took note of their interaction with particular interest.

* * *

 **Phantasmagoria's Guild Base**

 **-All The World's Stage-**

* * *

Lucia Thundercry arrived back at her home . . . the home of the Rank 4 Guild of YGGDRASIL. Now buried under over a hundred and fifty years of earth and rubble, it was impossible to find by normal means and even if you passed right in front of the entrance, you would not realize it unless you had detection magic above Tier VII – a level of power that pretty much no normal being in the New World would ever reach.

Unknown to both Lucia and Draconis, both of their home bases were a mere hundred miles apart from each other. The Lair and All The World's Stage shared the same section of mountain range.

Both of their defenses were so strong and most of their denizens did not actively search for the other, so it was by coincidence that they had not noticed each other the moment Draconis had arrived in the New World.

Since the protective barriers did not impede its sole remaining player and mistress, Lucia simply passed through the illusory images of bushes and thickened undergrowth in the tiny forest that filled a ravine in the mountains of the Wyvern Rider territories.

As she did so, her eyes gave way to the entrance halls.

Neon violet lights traveled up the length of the halls and ceilings alike. Strobes of light gently pulsed down the halls, deeper into the base. The floors were an orichalcum alloy in long, solid sheets that reflected the running lights like in a brilliant mix of their golden hue and the violets from the illuminating fixtures. The walls were engraved with sigils and protective emblems and trap sensors that could bury an intruder in Tier VI [ _Chain Dragon Lightenings_ ] among other deadly spells.

Pillars ten feet apart from each other and six feet thick rose to the ceilings twenty feet up. Each of these were styled like Roman columns and were flanked by robotic looking sentries that would come alive to fight you unless you were an invited guest.

Level 75 [ _Centurion Automatons_ ] with greatswords of every elemental affinity saluted her as she passed them by. They could not answer her for they had no speech modulators. She personally called them The Silent Watchers. Their armor was all Relic Tier, crafted from Scarletite Ore and other gemsteels.

"At ease." The sentries returned to their posts with robotic efficiency.

The inner door that she passed through separated and slid open in multiple parts like shards retracting into the doorway edges. A soft beam of light scanned her as she passed through it before a pleasant voice met her ears.

"Welcome home Mistress Lucia. I trust your excursion went well?"

Walking her way was one of the few remaining original NPCs of Phantasmagoria, Ludmilla York. Made by the leading secretary of the guild. An Ancient Wraith and overseer of the NPCs of All the World's Stage. As an aetherial being, she had no need of legs, but for some of the other races in the guild, she manifested legs and feet and walked like the others unless expediency was needed. Normally her lower half from the thighs down was no more than a fading gown of velvety night blue.

Her face was gaunt and pale as an undead, but something about it held an enchanting pleasantness to it rather than a horrifying one. Her hands when a person could see them were thin and bony but held power within their digits. A billowing gown embraced her and only those who could touch the aetherial could do so. Unless she herself desired to be touched, one normally would have to have the [ _Ghost Touch_ ] ability either via equipment or racially and only a handful of races had it naturally. Most of which were other types of ghosts and aetherial beings.

"It started off well and began to sour . . . Though that is not the reason I've returned Ludmilla. I trust that the Herald and the Auspices of War are preparing themselves for deployment?"

Ludmilla nodded, her form swaying as she did so. Her incorporeal nature made her more of a misty silhouette rather than a firm, defined body. As an Ancient Wraith, she was actually more Neutral than Evil or Good labels, with her tendencies leaning toward who ever commanded her.

"They are indeed Mistress Lucia. However, I must ask, for what reason are we mobilizing? We have not done such a thing for more than two hundred years. Why now? For whom do we march?"

Lucia began to walk down the halls in the direction of the Parade Grounds where they would be gathering. The tiles upon the floor lit up with each step she took like the walkway of a fashion lane. The walls were made of mirrors, reflecting their images, however, their reflections were of a grand, ancient dragon with violet light beams for wings and an annoyed expression, her maw huffing wisps of dragon's fire. Her long tail swished in annoyance across the floor in the reflections.

Ludmilla was nothing but a cloud of death hovering above the dragon stomping down the halls. Servants that walked down the hallways parted and stood aside for them as they passed, greeting Lucia with respect and reverence. Others stood nervously aside as they saw her annoyed reflection in the walls.

The [ _Halls of Truth_ ] was a basic defense that allowed them to see the true natures of intruders and their was no way to stop the effect, even if you were a guild member. It allowed Phantasmagoria to deduce the overall likely weaknesses and strengths of anyone and anything that entered their abode before ever engaging them in combat or otherwise.

The corridors ran a hundred feet before coming to a space ship like door, complete with sliding keycard locks and phasing doors. Lucia grunted in gradually lowering annoyance as the door scanned her being before she reached it. Confirming that it was one of the leaders of the Guild Home, it slid open before she reached it. The portal closed on Ludmilla as she was halfway through it, but as she was a ghostlike being, she simply phased through it without issue.

The room they entered into was like a kaleidescope. Countless reflections and patterns shifted and moved as one traversed the chamber. It was upon the ceilings, walls, and even floors. It could be horribly jarring to anyone with motion sickness.

Each and every shifting pattern and its home panel contained a warp sigil that would transport a person to another chamber, with each one holding a different location. Here, within the [ _Reflection Chambers_ ] lay fifty different possible destinations. Some of them were trap chambers, while others were other halls and meeting rooms or recreational facilities.

Ludmilla quivered a bit at the long bout of silence that Lucia projected since she had asked her question. Tentatively, she tested the waters a gain with great care in her tone.

"My Lady? Have I . . . offended you? If so I do apologize."

Lucia huffed and turned to face Ludmilla York with a tired, but apologetic expression. "No, Ludmilla, you have not offended me. I'm merely frustrated."

Lucia's voice echoed and rebounded off of the walls and ceiling and floor of the [ _Reflection Chambers_ ]. Another property of the room. It was not just one's reflection and image that was multiplied by the room. Voices and sounds were also reflected near ad infinitum, creating a cacophony of sounds and echo that assaulted the senses like some thousand stereos at once.

The two warped to the next chamber and her voice returned to normal. "An old acquaintance got my attention while I was out and about. I decided to travel with him a bit and he's gotten involved with the Dragon Kingdom's plight to the south."

Ludmilla halted in the air for a moment in shock before realizing she was being left behind. Quickly catching up to Lucia, she voiced her concern.

"Lady Lucia, I understand that we have remained in isolation, but you obviously were on good enough terms to offer assistance yes?" When Lucia nodded in agreement, she voiced her next question. "If that is the case then why the frustration? You are lumbering about like someone ate your favorite desserts in front of you."

It was no secret to all of Phantasmagoria that Lucia loved sweets. Anyone dumb enough to try and swindle her out of them ended up with a _very_ disgruntled and angry dragoness tromping after them and making their life miserable for a few days.

"I had a run in with my least favorite type of people in the process. Nevermind that he scolded me like a twelve year old." She sighed dejectedly. "Even if he was right about it now that I have had time to cool off a bit."

Ludmilla tilted her head to the side in a bit of confusion. Who did Lady Lucia know that would scold her like a child? Not many she supposed, but that was not her business.

They walked through another sector of All The World's Stage. This area was originally designed as a simple hallway, but had been expanded with a lot of funds by the whole guild into a galleria walkway that was open air. The paintings rendered were of past adventures and exploits that floated in midair within finely crafted frames of rare materials. Countless renderings would cycle through the chamber's length before eventually reseting and beginning anew. If someone touched one of them, it would halt while others passed it by until the viewer was satisfied and let it go.

The environment would shift between a grand, lush forestry with birds and other wildlife like wolves, deer, mountain lions, and other animals; to majestic mountains topped with frosty white snow and translucent azure ice caps that would sometimes fall away in huge sheets. A bracing chill would accompany the mountainous panorama. Other times it would show wide open grasslands with wild herds of horses and wild cats like cheetah or the workers of the plains like buffalo and other grass eaters like antelope. The climate could be felt shifting as well . . . well ever since they had come to the New World anyway.

What used to be just walls displaying them were now actual scenes and environments that anyone could go out into for a bit. You were shunted back to the hall proper when the scene would shift, which was a good thing because the thought of getting stuck their until the shift made the hall available again was a real concern.

The hall itself would change its displayed landscape once every two days.

Passing through the open doorways before them, they stepped through to a grand central hub. Lucia smirked as she admired it again. Anyone with vertigo issues seriously struggled whenever they had entered this area. The place was a labyrinth with upside down, reversed gravity floors and stairways that twisted and turning in midair, making you go from upside down to sideways wall walking and back upright. Certain doorways would transport you to an entirely different, but set location in the chamber. She knew this chamber by heart.

[ _The Infinity_ _Stairwell_ ] was her personal contribution to All The World's Stage.

Flying here was forbidden, she had made the room's parameters so no one could "cheat" the room's puzzling routes. Even she was not immune to her own rule here. As its creator though, she knew every corridor and trick by heart and proceeded onwards without hesitation.

Down the first set of stairs that would gradually curve to the right and become a part of the east wall before entering a dungeon door to the west . . . now straight down to the normal floor orientation. This would pop her and Ludmilla out of a portal on the ceiling . . . if you were back at the first entrance they came in from. Up a staircase that traveled to the south wall and around a spiraling set of stairs to a center platform that possessed a magic circle that bounced her up to its matching symbol on the northern wall. Lucia flipped over to land on her feet before walking across the wall to a sky blue door and opening it.

Stepping through it, her orientation reverted back to normal as she entered into [ _The Parade Grounds_ ]

All the gathered [ _Auspices of War_ ] turned and snapped to attention. Though all of them were outfitted in blood red cloaks, they wore fine, Relic Tier armor of oceanic blue and golds. No voices rang out as none of them were living beings.

An army of automatons . . . battle machines . . . magical constructs that simply repaired themselves after defeat after a set period of time. Their PoPs force of voiceless, silent warriors. Their helms were crafted to resemble feathered full helmets of old medieval knights and soldiers. The plumage on their helms were white and hazel browns like a falcon. They all wielded tower shields six feet tall yet so light that they did not impede movement. Paired with them were halberds of star steel that gleamed even with no light available. Their secondary weapons were longswords with blue blades of star sapphires and mythril. About a third of them instead were outfitted with great bows. Their mighty arms gave them a height of seven feet and their arrows were enchanted to fly true despite being crafted from hafts of Level 75 [ _Obsidianite_ ] ore.

As a self repairing force with massive regenerative powers, they had not a single healer among their number.

Other people back during the days of YGGDRASIL called their army "The Silent Death" for their troops made no noises . . . under the effect of [ _Silent Movements_ ] on every aspect of their gear, even the arrows and bows made no noise when fired. Clashing against their armor and weapons made no noise either. A void of sounds save your own death cry. A hauntingly silent army.

Gazing around the chamber, she walked to the head of the procession. The troops silently parted from her path, allowing her passage. Ludmilla simply floated above her.

"Herald? Are you hear? Lady Lucia wishes to speak with you."

"I am present. Though I admit that I am still rather sleepy."

Leaning against a pillar with her arms crossed around her midsection was a beautiful woman with eerily perfect complexion and proportions. Her eyes half opened to reveal blue and gold flecked irises. Her hair was a long, gently wavy blue and sea green. She wore a one piece sun dress of blues and greens that matched her hair. Knee high, high heel boots with metallic tips and heels were made from a richly cured and soft, supple leather that was from a super rare monster, [ _Dimensional Bovine_ ]. Its leathers enchanted footwear to possess the ability [ _Dimension Door_ ]. The ability to warp up to 300 feet per use instantly in addition to [ _Sky Dancer_ ] a skill similar to [ _Sky Walker_ ].

Her hair was worn up in a high ponytail, but was so thick and flowing that it cascaded like a waterfall. Over her sundress she would a long split tail coat that seemed out of place on her with the armored shoulder guard on her left shoulder. The tails of the coat stretched down to her mid calf. It was a rich, vanilla white with soft blues at the tips of the tails and sleeves. The sleeves themselves were asymmetric in design, with her left sleeve full length to her wrist while the right sleeve only came down to just above her elbow. Her right forearm was adorned in a gauntlet and elbow length glove with reinforced knuckles. Her left hand was left bare of glove and guard. Around her neck was a choker of vibrant white and gold in the shape of a stretched out musical note.

Lucia smiled wistfully at her creation. The Herald. A level 100 combat automaton crafted with battle command and support in mind. A battle songstress and ranged combatant with the power to directly influence morale boosting and magical buffs across the fields of war.

She was a slow starter, and through the magic she was infused with upon creation, she acted more mortal and living than most living people did.

"I'm sorry I haven't woken you up more often. Time to go to work dear."

The battle songstress brightened considerably.

"Ah? Mama Dragon!" She skipped along the air, slowly descending to Lucia's level as the female Dragon Ascendant froze at the nickname and hung her head in embarrassment.

Mama Dragon was The Herald's nickname for Lucia as a bit of a joke by the guild for the amount of time and passion she had put into making her NPC. When someone had asked her why it was taking her so long to create her, she had gotten frustrated and yelled, "She's like my daughter, and as such I want her to be everything I want in a daughter!"

Since that time, she was teased as Mama Dragon by many in the guild who were aware of her creation. She had just gone with it . . . only now to have The Herald now call her Mama Dragon was a little embarrassing, but she bore the worst of it because it made The Herald smile.

"Yes, it's me. Did you have pleasant dreams?" The Herald nodded and smiled. She knew that Mama Dragon told her it was time to work, so running on and on about her dreams even though she had asked was not good. Since their were so many soldiers present, it must be serious.

"I'm glad to hear it. How many of the Auspices are gathered?"

The sea green and blue haired songstress turned with a dramatic flourish as she waved her hand at the whole force gathered together. "There are 15,000 Auspices of War gathered! Who are we going to battle against?"

"We actually go to the aide of another. We will be supporting him and his own forces against the beastmen of the eastern territories. For now, let the Auspices remain here on standby. Their numbers should be sufficient for now. Come with me, but behave yourself."

She nodded enthusiastically as she fell into step with Lucia.

"Ludmilla, please finish the preparations here. I will let you know when to deploy the Auspices and where."

The Ancient Wraith bowed quietly as they passed through a [ _Gate_ ].

* * *

 **Arwintar**

* * *

Draconis had finally finished up with Emperor Jircniv and the merchants in accounting for all of the money. Every last coin had been accounted for with many, many of the merchants called up for counting being shocked that every single gold was there.

"Emperor Jircniv. I have upheld my end of the accord. I ask yet again for your promised aide to the Dragon Kingdom to the south. One Order of your knights was the agreed terms before your Imperial Knights and other members of the court that day."

Jircniv nodded seriously. The Imperial Knights with him nodded in confirmation. He was not excited to have to keep this kind of deal. The annual war with Re-Estize was steadily approaching and sending off another order would leave the Empire less defended than he desired. Still, with the funds that now flooded the Imperial Coffers, they could easily afford such a thing.

 _But how fast does he expect me to have one of the Orders ready by? I would suspect as soon as it would be possible to, but the question now is which order to send out?_

"Indeed. You are correct Martial Lord. We will gather up those men of the order posthaste."

To both men's surprise, Leinas stepped forward.

"Emperor, I would like to personally head up the Order and answer the call. With the funds received we will be more than able to train new knights and improve our position even further. To not answer such payment with anything less than our best would be an insult and grave error for the Empire."

Jircniv and Baziwood exchanged surprised looks. Leinas never did things like this. Volunteering for a mission that had little to do with the Empire proper was not like her.

"I see no reason to object to your volunteering, but I am curious as to the reason behind it. You are not normally one to offer your lance and sword liberally."

Leinas looked at Jircniv and nodded firmly. "I wish to see just what the Scarlet Swordsman will do for the Dragon Kingdom."

Jircniv nodded slowly. _He must have said something to her when they left the throne room to met his messenger days ago. I knew she was not truly loyal to me, but what could make her possibly forget her vows of revenge upon her own heritage . . . Ah . . . That must be it._

He cast a subtle, quick glance to her bangs that hid her curse. _He must have some means to cure her of her curse. Interesting._ _So long as our forces are there, she will be obligated to see to their return though._

Nimble could also see the same implication that the Bloody Emperor did, but as the blond emperor had not said anything against it, it was not his place to voice his concerns either. Baziwood frowned in concern, this was unusual to say the least.

"Are you certain Leinas?"

She nodded firmly. "This is not some monster extermination assignment. This is an all out battle unlike anything any of us of the Empire have seen. Would it not be best for one of us four to witness it first hand?"

Jircniv nodded in understanding. He knew her motivations and suspected that such information being brought back would not just be of the enemies they would face, but of the Scarlet Swordsman's own forces in action as well. In essence, it would be more valuable than anything her family would possibly ever do for the Empire. It would certainly earn her acclaim in service to the nation, and by extension, him personally.

A different form of revenge against her family for outing her. Jircniv smiled in amusement. She was getting smarter.

"Very well Imperial Knight Rockbruise. You have the blessing of the Empire. Go and rally the men and they shall be beholden to you."

She nodded and saluted before departing rather swiftly. No one saw the ambitious smirk on her face as she marched off.

Draconis nodded slowly and turned to see Lucia approaching with someone he had never seen before.

The group looked at Julia and the young looking woman beside her with a measure of interest.

"Draconis."

He nodded to her and the woman with her. "Lucia. Sorry for suddenly disappearing on you, but the timetable had to be kept. Might I ask who is with you?"

"Tsubasa. A dear subordinate and friend. We've been preparing our forces to assist your own, so your surprise departure was not terribly inconvenient."

 _It was damned annoying you creep!_

Draconis smiled even as he winced from her sharp mental [ _Message_ ].

Jircniv began to speak with Lucia about how they were to be allies in this temporary alliance to the the Dragon Kingdom, the woman looking none too impressed or pleased with the arrangement, but still understood the importance of it.

"No Emperor Jircniv, my forces are already at the borders and waiting for orders."

A stifling cold shot through Draconis like a blizzard. Calling to mind his list of Guardians, he mentally scanned the roster and his focus landed on Esdeath's name, a line crossing through it in dark crimson. Lucia noticed his demeanor completely about face from the smile he had on and frowned. He excused himself from the conversation they were engaged in with Nimble and fast walked to an alley before ducking into it. She grimaced. Hopefully it was nothing terribly serious, though with the way he looked and had paled, it was not to be.

As he opened a [ _Gate_ ], he sent out a [ _Message_ ].

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Amelia Lumiere sat at the table with Left Ramrod and the rest of her team. They were still reeling a bit from what they had discovered here thus far. Now preparing to negotiate the permission to leave, Chronos held a hand up to quiet them momentarily.

The Seraphim Empyrean paled a bit and clenched his jaw as he muttered something akin to disbelief and consternation. He began speaking in another language at a blistering pace before nodding firmly and gritting his teeth.

He turned to them with an apologetic expression. "I do apologize, but your departure negotiation must be placed on hold. My Liege calls and it is . . . urgent. Remain here for a time and I will be back to continue discussions as quickly as possible."

The angel vanished in a flash of brilliant light, but not before they saw him call a sword to his hand from thin air. He had not waited for their response.

Amelia wrapped her arms around her torso, beginning to seriously worry. What was happening out there?

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom's**

* * *

Samael was jolted out of his planning with Draudillon when Draconis's [ _Message_ ] intruded his thoughts.

 _Samael . . . I need you to come to my location . . . something has gone wrong . . . terribly wrong._

Not questioning his liege's tone, he stood and activated his ring. The [ _Gate_ ] spell made the Queen of the Dragon Kingdom frown in worry. She'd not seen him so battle ready before. Her slowly awakening powers could sense his distress and worry, his sense of urgency.

"Samael? What is wrong?"

"I honestly do not know Your Majesty . . . But I am about to find out regardless of whether I wish to or not."

Grasping his arm before he could pass through the portal, she looked up at his face with just her eyes. The act made her look irresistible to the Shadow Dragon. Mentally slapping himself out of his self induced stupor, he nodded calmly to her.

"Be careful Commander Samael. You and your liege both."

She stood on her tiptoes and placed a chaste peck on his cheek. She had to stand on one foot, toes strained to their most to reach his face, but it had the desired effect. She felt him warm considerably.

He merely grunted and nodded to her firmly before stepping through.

* * *

 **Tove Forrest**

* * *

The silence that was left in the wake of her body falling to the frozen ground was stifling. Cocytus could only stare at the woman he had come to respect and have a correspondence of sorts with, regardless of how brief it had been. He followed the order of the Supreme One without hesitation. As a warrior, he should have felt proud to serve faithfully . . . so what was this feeling of remorse and dread? The God Tier odachi dripped with her blood. Its stained blade a testament to the act.

 _LORD AINZ WOULD SURELY BRING HER BACK. SHE IS A SUBORDINATE OF LORD DRACONIS. SURELY HE WOULD DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT, OTHERWISE HE WOULD NEVER HAVE GIVEN ME THAT ORDER._

He had heard her death whisper before he had withdrawn the God Tier blade that Takemikazuchi had given him from her heart. Yet part of him also registered what she had spoken earlier. That even they failed before. Why did he feel such loss with her death? Her last words . . .

It had not been for him, but for her master. It's tone something akin to a plea and sadness.

An ear splitting crack of magical force shocked everyone out of their stupors. A series of dark portals tore asunder the fabric of reality as not one, not two, but _three_ [ _Gates_ ] opened.

From the central portal, the assassin sisters of Akame and Kurome respectively stepped from the void. The two sisters eyes immediately fell upon Esdeath and Akame's aura erupted in dark, abysmal fury. Dark, pitch black fire spiraled and swirled like a pillar of inky wisps that reached into the sky. Kurome's eyes darkened further and her hatred filled her being as the shadows her body threw about the ground in the setting sun began to writhe like serpents waiting to be let loose.

From outer two gateways exited a man with gray hair and crimson plate mail mixed with dragon like scale mail. The draconic motifs were not lost on Ainz and the Guardians of Nazarick. Nor was the enormous weapon he carried with him. Ainz mentally flinched. A battle scythe. A weapon in YGGDRASIL known far and wide for its astounding critical hit damage, abnormal reach, and Area of Effect zones. As an undead, he did not have to worry unless it was specifically blessed against the undead. His Guardians however, were another story though. It was a massive thing, with its blade reminiscent of a dragon wing and the pommel of the haft held a whip like tassel that was wrapped around the man's waist like a belt.

The other man that came through made Ainz grip the armrests of his throne so tight that they creaked and cracked. Albedo saw this and swallowed as she stared at the man. As his feet touched the ground, a magic circle . . . no . . . a [ _Metatron's Cube_ ] appeared at his feet and expanded to encapsulate him. The magical latticework was both beautiful and terrifying to behold. The sign of Sacred Geometry made her flinch. Only the absolute highest of angels held that magical lattice as a permanent enhancement.

Standing only slightly shorter than the crimson armored scythe wielder, he was dressed in bright whites and golds. Sapphires lined his waist cloth and the dark blue sash that trailed from right shoulder to left hip held a sword that even she shivered as she beheld it. A holy sword. Not just any sword enchanted against evil either, it was one of the named legends. Despite his simple attire, it was elegant and pristine to the degree of being otherworldly.

Legendary Tier: [ _Elysion_ ]. A blade that was said to only allow the holiest wield. The blade was deceiving in its sheath. What looked like a simple, yet golden wing hilted longsword was actually a great bastard sword with the Holy Attribute and a plethora of evil slaying skills and enhancements. Had Draconis really managed to find one just to give it to an NPC?!

Ainz felt his guts go cold. The [ _Metatron's_ Cube] was a dead giveaway to the real nature of this man that appeared. He knew what that man was behind the facade of a handsome human male. A creature that he had feared would appear when he had saved Carne Village: a Seraphim Empyrean. Only they had a magical geometric so complex. His jaw clacked open.

 _Oh shit . . . don't tell me these are his Guardians?! Did he have some kind of final contingency if one died the others would appear?_

Out of the central, shadowy dimensional gate stepped the master of the Ice Huntress: Draconis Brightblade himself. The shadow dragon officer Samael immediately noticed Esdeath's body and directed a furious glare at Cocytus. Likewise, Chronos Timetable's fury sparked against the Overlord himself.

Yet in spite of their rage, none of them advanced. Opting to remain just behind and to the sides of their liege commander.

Zaryusu and Crusch Lulu gaped openly at these men and women that walked out of the dark portals. Their instincts and senses immediately warned them that this central man with the cloak was like the God of Death upon his pyramid of undead soldiers. Soldiers out of mythical armies that were no more than steps and furniture to him.

Despite that warning, they could also sense something else. A power that had only been whispered of in their histories. The scent of something akin to their own, but so magically charged that it was in an entirely different league.

"A pair of dragon lords?" Crusch dared whisper her question. She had heard vague stories. Hazy descriptions that spoke of dragons as being of paramount, superlative magical power. This man radiated it like a flood. But what dragon lord took a human form?

Zaryusu gawked a bit. He could feel it. The warrior spirit radiating off of these beings were like that of a furious storm. He had heard legends in the human settlements and other creatures of sentience, men who could fight with the power of armies by themselves. Such men were hailed as Heroes or some other title like those of the Eight Greed Kings or the Thirteen Heroes. He was positive these people were all like that. Was this woman who fought and died for them a dear friend? A lover to one of them?

They both could feel the emotions off of the lead figure. Shock, disbelief faded to realization and sadness, slowly morphing into fury.

The man slowly made his way to his fallen Guardian. It had not even been a full seven weeks since she had been released from her icy captivity. Those rare, happy smiles and laughter echoed in his ears as he knelt beside her. Cocytus dared not say a thing. He felt like he had just committed a horrifically grave error. Esdeath had been sent to help him. How had it come to this?

The only sound to be heard was the brittle crunch of frozen ice and frost under his feet. Each step seemed to echo in everyone's ears.

"Draconis . . ."

It did not matter that Momonga, Satoru Suzuku realized the error of ordering Cocytus to "end the fight". The damage was done. Esdeath was to Draconis what all of the Guardians of Nazarick were to him; however, there was a key difference.

Ainz Ooal Gown's Guardians were the children of those that created them. As such Momonga cared for them out of obligation and nostalgia for the time spent with his friends and peers in the guild. Yet for all of this, they were not _his_ creations.

The Lair's Guardians were all Draconis's children. Not just nostalgic pieces within the machine, but well and truly his personal creations. They were his daughters and sons. He was not just their friend, but a father to them.

Ainz had just had Cocytus kill one. Even if that was not what he had meant when he had given his order. He had forgotten the absurd level of blind loyalty they had.

Draconis picked Esdeath up from the frozen ground like a bride. Her luxurious teal hair fell to the ground, a dark red blot in the center of it, staining it dark. Her rapier remained on the ground, its blade broken in two. The chest wound no longer bubbled blood, merely a remnant of the life that flowed from it.

Draconis ignored Cocytus, who could only look at the ground in internal conflict. The master of the Ice Huntress mumbled a soft prayer before turning his eyes to Ainz. The eyes that glared up at him were no longer prismatic. They were blood red. Power radiated off of the man in a constant flow that vaporized the frozen marshy waters and dried the exposed soil, baking it solid as stone out to twenty meters. Ainz was not ready or prepared to fight a dragon on such short notice, much less a player like himself that was one.

"Why . . . ?"

The question despite the obvious rage that Draconis emitted caught Ainz off guard. He'd only ever felt this level of outrage from Draconis once before. He had grown furious after a particular Player Hunt after Ainz Ooal Gown had formed and Draconis had turned up then just like he had now . . . at the time the final blow was delivered.

At that time, it had been Ulbert who had done the deed. The player had been weak, pitifully so, but Ulbert in his tangent of "Evil is Awesome" blasted the player with his second strongest spell. Simpler Tier VII and VI spells would have done the trick without difficulty, but overkill was the name of the game that day. Truth was, that the players they killed had been still relatively new to the game and had been trash talking their guild, warning that every player to them was a target and to stay away from the areas that they normally haunted.

A few of the members had wanted to set straight just how bad they really were. Momonga had not had anything else to do and joined out of sheer boredom. He learned that day just how furious Draconis could become. That, and how Draconis liked to keep his more powerful and unique skills hidden.

* * *

 **YGGDRASIL Area VI**

 **-Midgard-**

 **Poison Lily Meadow . . . Five Years Before the Termination of Servers**

* * *

"Why . . . ? That level of spell was completely unnecessary."

Draconis slowly approached the group, he had seen their Player vs Player battle from afar. Ulbert had stopped cackling in delight at his latest act of evil. Tabula and Bukubukuchagama backed away a bit. Nishikienrai hid in the shadows. Two others that Draconis was not too familiar with crossed their arms at him. He was not too well known by a few of the guild's newer members. Momonga turned to face Touch Me's old colleague.

"Hm? Draconis? What do you mean? It's just a Player Kill. This is an open area with no Safe Zones."

Ulbert turned to Draconis with scorn apparent in his voice. The middle finger emoji directed his way. Tabula sighed and Chagama scooted a bit farther away. Ulbert always tried to piss of Draconis whenever he visited and normally Draconis merely shook his head and ignored him. Those moments were in the relative safety of Nazarick.

They were not there now.

"They were half your levels. They were level 50. There was no need to use that level of spell."

Said spell did not just deal damage and be done with it. No, it was a slow killing, terrifying spell to get hit with due to the spell swallowing you slowly as the HP vanished from your pool. It ended with a maw of teeth swallowing you. It was not a pleasant way to go given the game's first person perspective.

"The hell do you care Draconis? You don't belong in Ainz Ooal Gown."

Draconis posted an angry emoji and crossed his arms in disgust.

 _This is why I said that Touch Me has lost his abilities. His original beliefs during the war would have never allowed someone like Ulbert into Nine's Own Goal. Nor would he ever allowed the loss of World Item_ [ _Atlas_ ] _because he would never have overlooked the character of a that bastard snake in the grass Granmeyer!_

 _There are those that require aide and succor, those that merely need a push, those that appreciate the help despite not really needing it, and those that give it instead of receiving. Then there are some who cannot be helped, those that refuse it, and those . . . that should have never been graced with it._

 _The worst offenders though are those that receive it, and then squander it._

 _Touch Me showed me that there could be people out there who do still believe in right and wrong and try to live a proper life. As few as they may be, they do exist. What kind of world would it be if the Golden Rule was truly followed in the spirit of its writing?_

' _Do unto others as you would have done unto you.' Wouldn't most people want to be treated fairly? Respectful, honest, and good? This vicious cycle can be broken, but it has to be start from within and broken from without._

Draconis did not budge, but he remained silent. They all knew at heart what the issue was here.

Ulbert shook his head and shrugged before giving off a yawning emoji. The other two relatively newest additions to the guild who shared Ulbert's evil theme stepped up with their weapons drawn. The two of them thought that their whole group would fight Draconis if he tried anything, but Tabula and Chagama hesitated.

Chagama did so because she knew that Draconis could tank almost as well as she could despite her better defenses. He would not be an easy kill. She knew that he had a massive Regeneration ability even without being on par with their level. Talking with him she knew that Touch Me had trusted him quite a bit and for Touch Me to admit that was no small feat. Having the word of a World Champion was nothing to sneeze at.

Tabula did not make any aggressive moves out of respect. His own strong personality and personal views of the current situation made him step back. To him, if he could get the best of other players with his ideas and horror movie themed character, bravo, but this was an entirely different scenario. You did not just go around provoking a Player Killer Killer. Especially one with a reputation.

He wagered that if Draconis had not been dying in PKK battles or on insane solo quests, he would be close to Level 100 by now. However, his code and his conduct as an anti-Player Killer would see him losing levels whenever he died. Tabula had a massive amount of respect for a man to carry on like that despite the horrendous Experience Penalty he was under as a Dragon Player. He did not know if he could keep playing with that kind of yoke.

"Ugh, you're no different than Touch Me. You have no idea what it is to suffer you rich blow har . . ."

" **Don't you DARE make that assumption you** **ignorant** **little shit!"**

Draconis drew steel and they all flinched. In all the time Tabula, Chagama, and Momonga had known him, even when he had been furious at the loss of [ _Atlas_ ] and Touch Me's lack of drive to avenge their loss the man had never cursed like that!

Trash talk was normal in any game like this, but Ulbert's words were stepping over the unwritten rule of the game chat: bringing real world personal issues into the public chat records. Everything was backlogged and kept on server records of the game to protect players and the company itself from cybercrimes and other illegal activities. It was one thing the developers took seriously, if only to cover their own asses. Ulbert did not seem to care and kept pushing.

"You two piss me off. You both have a wife! You didn't have your parents die in a work accident and the mega-corporations not give a shit!"

A vision had flashed in Draconis's mind. His mother and father . . . his brother . . . a cleaver in his brother's hand and an ice pick in the other. Their mother's hands on either side of the room. Their father's face cleaved right off and hanging on the sink. Bloody wounds and a terrified look on their mother's face as she died. Not at what her eldest son had done to her and her husband, but that her youngest son . . . that Draconis had walked in on the last moments. The last thing their mother had seen before dying was her youngest son taking the baseball bat his father had bought him for his birthday the week before and charging his sibling with a look of pure fury.

" **At least . . . you didn't see their bodies."** Momonga had frowned. What did Draconis say? Chagama and Tabula looked at each other and shook their heads. They did not know what he was muttering. Draconis lifted his sword to the skies and screamed bloody murder. Ulbert raised a defense but was slower by a fraction of a second. **"[ _DIVINE RUINATION_ ]!"**

All of their visions had been consumed in light from all around them. They had never seen that weapon skill! Ulbert was not dead, but he was laid out on the ground with an absolutely massive portion of his HP gone. Likewise, the other two were also stunned and prone. Their own HP was massively drained. They were all afflicted with the stun status except for Momonga, who turned to watch Draconis walking away, sword sheathed.

"Draconis!"

"We'll talk later." Draconis vanished in a [ _Teleportation_ ] spell.

When he had arrived back at the town he warped to, Draconis and entered a private Inn Room and slammed a fist into the wall several times before slumping to his knees. Letting loose a feral scream he howled his rage, sadness, and frustration.

It wasn't until a pair of hands wrapped around his shoulders and a weight pressed on his back that he stopped screaming. He was crying.

"I thought I had moved past that damned memory."

He spoke with a hoarse croak. He had lost track of how long he had been screaming. There was no need for him to turn to know who it was in the room with him. He had set privacy settings to only allow one person into private rooms with him when he was not in a party. Artorias said nothing, merely remaining silent. A hug was not considered an illicit action for some oddball reason and so the system warnings did not activate.

His wife spoke nothing.

She had noticed that he had not shown up or even sent word to them that he was behind in arriving for a raid. When she had searched for him via their Friend List and seen him in an Inn Room, she had grown concerned. He nearly never went to Inn Rooms unless he wanted privacy as an Inn Room was essentially an isolated server. Her game marriage to him allowed her to access private rooms her spouse was in despite privacy settings.

Instead of trying to console him with reassurances and loving whispers, she simply remained a stoic pillar of support. There was nothing she could do or say to ever erase that nightmare he lived through. Anything said would be hollow to his past and the life experiences that had molded him to this point. To her, it would cheapen the act. She knew him too well. Knew that he would vent and then apologize for causing her problems and then try his best to move onward. She could never fully make him put a past like that behind him, but she could help him live with it.

* * *

 **New World**

 **-Present-**

* * *

Draconis stood before them, with him looking up at Ainz atop his pyramid of undead, and the Knight Most Heavenly glaring up at the sign of absolute power.

"You know how much our Guardians mean to us . . . What in the hell have you done?!"

Even as he spoke, Draconis took Esdeath's body into his arms and cradled her to his chest. He gently wiped dried blood from her lips away. Her closed eyes and oddly serene expression of satisfaction made her seem so innocent. Ainz was hit with a memory of Satoru. The one of his mother dead from overworking as she prepared his favorite meal. In that instant, Ainz realized just HOW much of a mistake he had just made.

 _Fuck . . ._

"It was not my intention." Ainz began. Draconis's glare intensified even further, but the dragon knight remained silent, allowing him to continue. "The battle was a test. If she lasted long enough in a one-on-one duel with Cocytus, then these Lizard men that they both claim to be worth my time would be granted the opportunity to become a part of Nazarick's expanding territory."

"Territory expansion . . . ? You initiated battle with these lizard men behind me to expand territory? She died in a duel for _territory_?!"

Beside him, Chronos frowned and closed his eyes as if in deep thought. The Seraphim's eyes were half open and dilated, he did nothing but breath evenly. The angel silently cast a spell of divination. Normally, this would tip off everyone as the runes of Tier Magic would materialize to manifest the desired spells. However [ _Metatron's Circle_ ] encompassed all magic spell runes and was always active when engaged. As such, the telegraphing runes did not appear for the Sacred Geometry mandala represented every spell possible. As such, there was no way to tell if a Seraphim Empyrean was even casting a spell until it was too late, for the runes engulfed all manner of runic symbology used for every spell in YGGDRASIL. Super Tier included.

As such, his spell [ _Tales of the Epic Battle_ ] went unnoticed by everyone, even Draconis himself. Before his eyes, and his eyes alone, did the battle between the Ice Guardian of Nazarick and the Ice Huntress of The Lair play out like a recording.

Said dragon knight's fury grew more heated in indignation and shock at Ainz's reasoning.

Realizing the error in his words, Ainz backpedaled mentally. Rats _! How do I put this without pissing him off further? If he goes all out, there's no telling what he'll do!_ _I have absolutely nothing on his Guardians outside of Esdeath . . ._ _damn it_ _. . . he's made a Seraphim Empyrean an NPC Guardian?! How did he accomplish_ THAT?

Clearing his throat to show that he was at least contemplating a response instead of merely ignoring Draconis, he brought a hand up to his sharp pointed, bleach white jaw. Eye flames dimmed a bit to reflect his inner thoughts.

"Cocytus was ordered to venture into this area expand Nazarick. We are exposed here and needed to ensure the area's security. We are also spreading the glory of Ainz Ooal Gown. Surely you understand at least that much. During that mission, he engaged these lizard men and saw their potential thanks to Esdeath. However, she interrupted the duel between their best and Cocytus. She must answer in full."

Draconis grit his teeth so hard Samael could hear them. The earth began to rumble in time with the power and fury Draconis was feeling.

"So you made them fight each other to the death?!"

Ainz held a hand up in a placating gesture, but from his position of superiority it only looked like a raised hand on condescension. Chronos's eyes regained their focus as he grit his teeth. Samael's aura blazed at the gesture against his lord, however a short, and curt shake of the head from Chronos quelled his anger and the reactions of their peers. Chronos knew something . . .

"Draconis, it was a duel to see how long she could fight. It was never intended for her to die."

The crimson haired Knight Most Heavenly breathed out a long and arduous hiss that flickered with dragon's fire. It was only his gaze that remained on Esdeath's face that kept him from doing anything else.

"Then do tell . . . Momonga . . . what precisely _was_ the intention?"

"Curiosity." Ainz found himself answering with the first honest thing that came to mind. "I was curious as to just what she was capable of. Should she have lasted to the setting of the sun I had promised to not destroy the lizard men. She fought for so long and the sun was beginning to set. I told them to finish things. Cocytus took my words the wrong way. For that, I apologize."

Cocytus flinched and bowed his head in shame. He had indeed taken his Lord's words the wrong way. But how was he to precisely understand what his Lord intended? Esdeath had not cursed him or his actions as she died, but what of her own Lord?

"So she matched Cocytus and you decided to have him 'finish' the fight because she was doing exactly as the rules of this duel were laid out? Because you grew impatient and wanted it to end instead of acknowledging her feat and simply calling for a halt to their fight?"

Draconis's fangs elongated and the Guardians could see claws extending from his fingertips, replacing his nails. What was this? Albedo swallowed. Despite her indignation at the insults thrown at her supreme lord, she began to realize just how fierce a person claimed by the other Supreme Ones of Ainz Ooal Gown to be their equal truly was. Nishikienrai's warning about angering Draconis in his journal jumped out at her now more than ever.

" _ **Dragons are scary as they are. But Draconis makes them look like kid's stuff. I only ever saw him go all out once in a Player Killer Killer incident and they were all like us in AoG, full powered and in a group. He killed the half of them before having to resort to his true dragon form. It was**_ **NOT** **_because he's strong offensively. It's due to his sheer staying power in a fight. Once he transforms though . . . it was all over for the remainder of that party. Damn I don't want to go against him when he transforms. He's scary as hell."_**

Chronos stepped over to his liege and placed a placating hand on his shoulder. A soft glow enveloped them both and they saw Draconis's eyes lose a sliver of their maddened rage. His eyes lost much of their crimson hue and regained their prismatic nature. As the angelic guardian spoke in muted tones that not even his allies could hear.

Even as the power from Draconis raged, it began to ebb and died down. Though it still smoldered darkly like the glowing embers of a dying fire, the Dragon Ascendant frowned heavily as he closed his eyes and took an extraordinarily deep breath before releasing it in a long, hissing breath. He repeated the action once more, this time holding it before letting go. The words of warning from the Valkyries and Queen Titania from before echoed in his mind, but it was as a haze. He looked to the angel attending him.

"You are certain of this?"

His inquiry confused many, including his own Guardians. From his seat, Ainz saw the angel nod once before approaching his lord and taking Esdeath from his arms in a gentle fashion. Her body glowed with soft white light, but the effect made many present tense.

Her body began to dissolve, melting into motes of light. All that remained was a frosty gemstone, a shard of frozen light that flickered faintly. The angel was focused upon the remnants of Esdeath as he wrapped the gemstone within a holy cloth and chant softly. The cloth changed into a chord of fine weave before wrapping itself around Draconis's neck as a scarf. Draconis tucked the gem into the collar of his clothing under his armor.

Ainz did not know what it was they were doing, but it was obviously some kind of method akin to the preserving the essence of the Ice Huntress to bring back to life later. She was a NPC, he would bring her back . . . wouldn't he?

Draconis held a hand over the place he now kept Esdeath's essence before turning to walk toward the lizardmen village.

"We'll talk later Momonga. I have too much on my plate as is. Have a care, your actions . . . all of our actions will have dire consequences on the denizens of this continent. The ends do not always justify the means." He turned to Cocytus. "You were only following orders Cocytus. I hope that her sacrifice is not wasted on you."

With that he turned to the lizard men and cast an watchful eye over them all. It lingered on Zaryusu and Crusch surrounded by his brother's corpse and the other chieftains. His eyes then viewed the devastation around them. He walked into their midst and drew a sword from the aether, the act stunned them. Zaryusu made to say something, but the man in crimson armor grunted in a silencing tone. Draconis's voice was quiet, but unmistakable.

"Esdeath died for you despite whatever help she provided Cocytus as payment for the favor I offered him. Honor dictated that I repay it as my word was my bond. As such, I am also responsible for the suffering here however indirect as it may be."

All the lizard men were perplexed by his speech. Ainz grew intrigued. What was he going to do? He held the sword's cross guard to his lips and kissed the weapon's hilt in salute. Their curiosity was answered when a forty foot wide and high dome of magical glyphs and runes expanded from him. The light was brilliant in the setting sun. Ainz stood from his throne, the act prompting Nazarick's Guardians to ready themselves.

In response, Draconis's own Guardians stood fast between them and their lord.

"A portion of my culminated life experience is fair trade for the damage and trauma my honor has caused you all."

Closing his eyes, he began to chant.

" _ **By Father Time and Mother Earth . . . Heavens Above and Hells Below take heed! For the souls lost upon the plain of battle amidst the terrors of war wrongly sowed . . . verily doth they cry out in crazed agony. In Penitence do I beseech the Wills of the World and Seek Bargain with the Ladies of Fates . . ."**_

"Ah . . . so the rumors about True Dragons are true. They can wield magic equal to a pure caster; Super Tier Spells included regardless of their builds." Ainz was smiling, even if no one could tell it.

Due to the information wars in YGGDRASIL, the Dragon Player community was extremely tight with their information about abilities discovered and powers they could unleash. He knew that Draconis had spellcasting due to his Dragon Race, but he had not seen Draconis since he was level 80. Yet here he was casting what was definitely a Super Tier spell! He held a hand up, forcing his Guardians to stand down. He wanted to see what this spell was. He'd never seen or heard a Super Tier spell that required a chant. And that was saying something.

 _This should be a good learning experience. No small wonder the Dragon Players were all strong. Full magic casting regardless of class builds, with those going pure magic caster having an insane amount of magical power at their fingertips! Dragons are magical beings after all. Its what made hunting them as dangerous as it was for farming rare materials! At least the high level ones._

As the runes and power swirled around him like a cyclone, he opened his eyes and his Guardians could see them turn a silvery white.

" _ **In Reparation I Verily Offer Thee the Karmic Ties that I have Forged in Life . . . That Yonder Souls Ripped Violently from this Plane would find Strength Anew. Unto the Burden of Mine Soul do I willingly step forth unto the Threshold!**_ **[Freya's Embrace]** ** _!"_**

The magical framework of the spell expanded to engulf the whole area of the marshland they had fought in. The bodies of the fallen lizard men alliance rose from the ground and shined with light. Samael frowned heavily, but did nothing to stop his lord. Fresh wheat and other crops defied the very nature of the land they stood upon as they sprouted, and flourished to harvest point in an instant.

Draconis thrust his sword into the air as the light grew brighter, its soft white glow filling the skies. The light seemed to coalesce into the form of a colossal, ravishingly beautiful goddess that spread her arms wide. The bodies of the lizard men revived, wounds suffered at death healed and surprised cries went up all around. Zaryusu could not believe his eyes. Crusch fell back on her hind quarters, her tail rigid in shock. Before their eyes, their brethren were being brought back to life! Whole even!

Draconis looked up to the goddess image before them, bowing deeply as he did so while dipping his head. He was not particularly devout, but even he knew that in this lore, and in this world, things like gods did actually exist. His rational mind just came to the simple conclusion that such beings even stronger than them were only given their dues.

The goddess like being nodded her head and touched Draconis on the head, he crumpled to a knee, his sword burying itself in the ground. The crimson haired knight grit his teeth as he felt the life go out of him. Sweating profusely as he mentally noted how much life force he was losing, he sighed heavily at the stock he took of his power.

 _9 Billion Experience? That's nearly an entire level. I better hold off on any more Experience Drain Spells. Ugh . . . my Karma is down from Positive 450 to Positive 25. Damn . . . how many did I revive?_

The goddess, satisfied with the payment received, smiled upon them and vanished in a brilliant shower of glowing rays.

Samael watched his lord with deep concern. He knew that particular Super Tier Spell drained Experience and Karma in proportion to the number of targets it resurrected. It was also one of the only four Super Tier Spells that Draconis knew. The other three were unknown to him, but the revival one had saved the Queen of Avalon and her Knights of the Round during the Dragonsong War.

Magic Casters could know up to many, _many_ times more Super Tier Spells than Draconis, and as such, the dragon had selected his with great care and consideration.

Draconis slowly rose from his kneeling position and sighed deeply. Sheathing his blade before willing it away, he turned to face Zaryusu and Crusche. His eyes were once again the prismatic swirl of colors and the two stood stock still in light of what he had just done.

"There is little I can do to fully appease the traumas you all have fought through. I sent Esdeath to Cocytus in response to a favor owed. For my part in this ordeal of blood and tears and terror, I am sorry."

Everyone present froze as Draconis dropped to his right knee and bowed his head before the two of them. Akame and Kurome clenched their fists and jaws as they looked away in shame. Samael followed the lead of their liege and took to his right knee as well. It was symbolic in all kinds of natures.

The right knee down and left knee up was a representation of giving one's heart over to the person being knelt before. The vital organ of any living mammal and human.

The left knee up also made traditional drawing of a sword nearly impossible and as such, was the proclamation of no ill intent or murderous intention to those knelt to.

Bowing the head was a declaration of not being worthy enough to look upon the eyes and face of said individual or people out of humility. It also exposed the neck, placing their life in the hands of those bowed to, who could easily smite them in the weakspot with little resistance.

It was with these things in mind that Draconis remained in his position. He spoke no other words, for they would be excuses upon the wind. He had already lost Esdeath, but that would not pay for the tragedy and horrors the lizard men had gone through. Even though he had revived the majority of them, the experience of being killed in such fashions remained. Many of them would remain traumatized regardless for the rest of their days. Even with help and families and love, the experience would never fade.

That was the true reason for his supplication and abasement. For his guilt and hand in the fates of the lizard men regardless of how indirect.

Upon his pyramid of undead majesty, Ainz felt only one thing: anger.

Anger at seeing Draconis kneel before these in-significants.

Anger at not realizing just how much power the man had acquired without him knowing and realizing that he might now become an enemy.

But anger mostly directed at two people: Draconis, and himself.

Skeletal fists shook in seething anger at himself for getting careless, and at Draconis for his interference.

 _This should not have turned out like this. Esdeath should not have died, but I did not give clear instructions and my tone of frustration with Demiurge assuming my mindset made Cocytus assume my true intent and deal a killing blow that she should never had taken. Now Draconis is apologizing and dirtying himself because he believes himself also responsible for their plight? What bullshit!_

The memories of constantly debasing himself for his bosses only to get shafted on shifts and workloads. Humbling himself to promote his superiors while never receiving recognition . . . never mind promotions or raises in even the pay he had been making. All of these resurfaced from Satoru and they went up in flames in his mind's eye.

 _If being good and just means debasing yourself, then screw that. I get what he's saying about being smart about how we go about things, but c'mon! This place is rotten all over! I did enough of that bowing and debasing myself back at my job and what did it get me? Nothing . . . Absolutely nothing._

"Draconis!"

All eyes turned to Ainz Ooal Gown and all Guardians present, of Nazarick and The Lair alike, gawked. Ainz stood from his throne and descended toward them. Draconis stood from his kneeling position and turned to properly face Ainz as he approached. He held up a hand, forestalling all actions by his Guardians despite their protective natures.

"Yes?"

Ainz grabbed a bony fistfull of Draconis's cloak and shook him once. The action startled the lizardmen and Draconis's Guardians began drawing steel.

"Lock it down!" Draconis's voice carried throughout the marshlands. Absolute authority reigned in his Guardian's actions before they could finish drawing weapons. He turned a firm look at Ainz, abyssal flames bored into prismatic orbs and vice versa. Draconis's voice was low and cold like steel. "If you want to talk Ainz, do it with words, not actions that can be construed as assault by our guardians. I told you we would talk later."

Ainz released Draconis, but pointed into the distance. "No. We're talking now."

Sensing no room for argument, Draconis nodded slowly.

Both men began walking away from those gathered around. Draconis gave his Guardian's a meaningful look to keep them from making any rash moves. Samael nodded deathly serious as he understood the wordless orders. They would not pick a fight unless attack first. Especially with so many around them who would never even hold a candle to the PoPs they oversaw.

After walked what they both felt was a sufficient distance away from all ears, Ainz turned a heated glare at Draconis, who weathered it with a placid expression.

"You've just undone all the work Cocytus has done for the glory of Nazarick!"

Draconis gave him a half lidded stare complete with raised brow. "Truly? I'm not impressed _Momonga_." He stressed the true name of the Overlord before him. "Annihilating a whole inhabitance of sentient life who stand absolutely _zero_ chance in hells of wounding the Guardians much less their underlings? You're clubbing seals Momonga."

Ainz gripped his bony hands into fists that rattled in anger before poking Draconis in the chest with a long, skeletal finger.

"Heavy words from a man hailed back in the day as a PKK. How many lower level people did you kill?"

Draconis gave Momonga a warning growl that everyone could practically _feel_. The dragon knight's eyes remained a swirl of colors though.

"Don't twist the circumstances of those times Momonga. As more experienced individuals, they should have known better or at least sympathized with having been in their victim's shoes at least once before. Instead they targeted those weaker as a weaksauce excuse to assert their idea of 'fun' or 'dominance'. They could just have easily helped them learn and achieve greatness, perhaps even forged friendships and a guild. Did these Lizardmen even attack you? Even know of your existence before you had Cocytus embark on this supposed 'glory' mission? From what he had told me when requesting help, it was a military move that he had been honored to receive. I believed it to be a retaliation for attacking. Obviously I was deathly wrong."

They had not attacked, much less known of the existence of the Great Tomb of Nazarick, Momonga knew this in his mind, but they needed this land to expand. Sure he could have made progress into the Katze plains proper, but the annual war that he had heard vague details on was approaching and he did not want undue complications from both nations at the same time . . . at least not for now.

"I will spread the glory of Nazarick far and wide Draconis. This is the chance to rebuild the glory of the Great Tomb! That is why I have changed my name to Ainz Ooal Gown!"

Draconis stuttered in disbelief. "After the conversation we had about the odds of running into others we knew during those heydays . . . you think that _this!_ " He waved a hand at the recovering Lizardmen and the still destroyed homes. The land around the wrecked and destroyed homes was now verdant like no other in the area that the Super Tier Spell [ _Freya's Embrace_ ] had influenced, but the rest of the environment still held the stench of death and decay and swampland. "That _this_ . . . is the way to spread the glory of Nazarick? Through death and destruction? Dominance by the sword? Rule by fear?!"

Momonga shook a bony fists at Draconis and waved a robed arm at the gathering of both the Guardians of Nazarick and the mass of undead troops beyond.

"We were the outcasts of the game Draconis, so we went with it! We played the role of evil!"

Momonga . . . Ainz Ooal Gown's grandiose leader got into Draconis's face, his eye flames flared brighter than any of them had ever seen. The [ _Despair Aura IV_ ] was flaring at full force, the dark pillar of malevolence rose into the skies. Draconis grit his teeth as his anger threatened to rise uncontrolled. The regalia of [ _The Finery of Valhalla_ ] pulsed in warning in reaction to his building fury.

"Yes." Draconis's frustrated, hissed acceptance surprised Ainz and his aura died down but a slight bit. The NPCs of both Nazarick and The Lair only barely let their tension drop.

"What?"

"Yes . . . You all were the outcasts, and as such you all rallied around a banner. A banner that garnered both respect and hatred alike in equal measure. Yet not every last one of you were fighters. White Lace loved creating things, as did Blue Planet. Yamaiko-sensei was patient and kind. You were not judged and for what you were capable of, but your appearance, your desire to play a monster! You forget yourself Momonga . . . I was also one of you before as Nine's Own Goal before our falling out. Before the time of Ainz Ooal Gown. In truth my irritation lay with Touch Me more than anyone else. Even more than my issues with Ulbert . . ."

His words made his own Guardians stare guiltily at the ground. The Guardians of Nazarick with the exception of Albedo gawked.

"Wha . . .? Ainz-sama knew Draconis for that long?" Shalltear had heard whispers of it but had not put real stock into the rumors. Bukubukuchagama had been peers with Draconis from what Aura and Mare remembered of their conversations back then. Both their creator and the knight had discussed defensive moves and techniques and other complex terms for aspects of combat. "Hate", "Aggro", "Cast Timers", "Spell Speed", "Weapon Skills", and other terms.

The dark elf twins at least respected the man for the simple fact that their creator did, no more, no less.

Draconis was definitely not friends with every single member of Ainz Ooal Gown, but he had enough friendships with enough of them to have them vote in the majority in letting him visit as a guest from time to time. Bellriver had been a major factor in that decision.

Part of that agreement in the vote was that in affairs that involved PvP combat, Draconis would not interfere so long as it was justified. However, random acts of PK'ing by the guild if he was not informed before hand and agreed to remain out of it were fair game for him to interfere with. It was this clause that Ulbert and a few others disagreed with and added in that if his wife's guild Avalon was involved in any incidents with Ainz Ooal Gown, he would remain neutral and stay out of it.

Draconis had agreed.

Now though . . . things were most definitely not the same as back then.

"What does slaughtering these . . . weaklings truly do for you?" He ground the word 'weaklings' out through clenched teeth. They were strong, strong in a different way. Strong in their families and the will to keep going, the grit they showed in holding out. He could respect that immensely. "Stoke your ego? Preen your feathers?"

"Keep out of this Draconis. You agreed to . . ." Draconis unleashed his [ _Awesome Aura_ ] in response to those words. His anger finally catching fire and while he vaguely kept a lid on it to a degree, he pointedly ignored the flare of his Sentient Item. Ainz's jaw clacked open a bit in surprise. He knew dragons had a [ _Frightful Presence_ ] they could unleash on anyone nearby, but this was different . . . this was beyond normal dragons.

"Yes! I agreed to remain neutral in events between powers like ours! But these lizardmen are NOT powers like ours! They are not our equals! Furthermore, I was informed of armed action, but not like THIS. When I sent Esdeath to aide Cocytus it was to act as a foil and buffer against extreme methods . . . Even so, I knew her own nature well enough to realize some death may come of it regardless . . . but a slaughter like this?! Testing strength and utterly crushing are two different acts. I am being responsible for my hand in this tragedy for I am just as guilty if not more so for not thinking it through more."

Draconis swept his arms wide and Tier Magic activated, engulfing both of them and distorting his words to the rest of those around them. It was not Lucia's [ _Spectral Conversation_ ] but it would work in this case. He continued on, his eyes glowing bright orange in indignation.

"So as per the old agreement, I can and WILL intercede here, because unlike back then, _**it's no longer A GAME!"**_

He roared the last part full of fury and his spell struggled to warp and change the words that if heard by those around them, it would surely be damning for both of them. Draconis and Ainz both.

Breathing hard and beginning to sweat from the venting stress, Draconis stepped back from Momonga, who stood stunned. He could feel the power Draconis radiated and it honestly surprised him a bit. The last time he had talked in person with Draconis before coming to the New World, the man was level 90. After the events of the Dragonsong War that Ainz Ooal Gown did NOT participate in due to the fact that by that time the majority of them had quit the game entirely, he had heard that Draconis had reached level 100, but he had no idea what his final levels were.

 _Did he find a rare class like I did?_

The thought did make him wonder a bit.

"I'm not happy with this at all Momonga." Draconis recovered a bit of his temper, but it still roiled under the surface. "Do not tread on these natives any more and I will not interfere further."

Ainz glared darkly at Draconis. "I will ask plainly then, for the sake of our old agreements. Are you still a friend or foe?"

"Should friends not hold their own accountable for their actions?"

"Stop preaching Draconis."

"Then stop being the kind of boss you once hated."

That stopped Ainz short. The words slapping him in the face. His eyes burned bright crimson in the empty eye sockets of his skull.

"Me? Being like the bastards back then?! How dare you!"

Draconis glared right back. "You may be mindful of those under you, but those not under you? Well Momonga? Ainz? Whatever it may be you call yourself now! Wisely applied, just your magics alone would bring about an absolute Golden Age like no other to those around you! Yet you . . .!"

"Get off your high horse! [ _Soul_ _Enervation_ ]!"

Ainz held out a hand and clenched his fist. Draconis gasped and clenched his chest as he dropped to his knees as the spell took hold. Samael wasted no time at all, lunging at Ainz with his scythe in both hands as he roared in pure, unadulterated fury.

"[ _Armor of Effulgent Beryl_ ]!" The scythe grazed what became an afterimage of Ainz as he dimensional shifted away from the strike. Akame and Kurome grasped their liege's shoulders on either side as they glared death at Ainz Ooal Gown. Chronos grabbed Samael by the back of the collar and shook his head negatively as his [ _Metatron's Circle_ ] glowed brightly and they all vanished into thin air with a [ _Greater Teleportation_ ].

Ainz smoldered at the now empty patch of grassy marsh. Looking down on the skeletal hand he had raised against the Dragon Player, he regained a bit of his senses. "What? Did I really just?"

From her spot at the top of Ainz's throne pedestal, Albedo shivered. Was this the end of the friendship their parties once shared? She shuddered to find out.

Demiurge smiled and pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose. That would show the goodie two shoes knight! Ainz's power and authority were absolute!

Shalltear did not recognize the spell Lord Ainz had cast, but she did feel the fury in Ainz's aura and the surprise in Draconis's. Clearly this was not planned. What did Draconis mean by Lord Ainz's "bosses"?

"Ainz-sama? What happened between you and all the Supreme Beings?" Shalltear frowned as she bit a fingernail in apprehension.

Aura and Mare shivered at the power Ainz had shown. They had been the recipients of his kindness and generosity, but to see his anger taken out on a person they believed to once be a friend . . . they vowed to never do anything to get on his angry side. Sure, they had witnessed the fight between Lord Ainz and Shalltear, but Lord Ainz had done that out of duty, not anger.

Cocytus could only stare in shock and confusion. How did things slide down hill like this?

* * *

 **Reviewer Responses!**

 **Flaming fruits and veggies and pitchforks fly through the air . . .**

 **WOAH! I know it's been awhile but yeeesh!**

 **That being said. Yes, this chapter has taken a long time to come out.**

 **I will not lie when I say Summer is the slow time for me in terms of updates. I will do my best to have something out each month until September. Summer is the crunch/busy time at my job and the sheer heatwave does not help my stamina. I'm exhausted when I get home, so a lot of times I just end up crashing and decompressing.**

 **Thanks to all of you reading The Exiled, I keep going on!**

 **NOW to Reader Reviews.**

 **Thristan:** Oberon can be a douche. Totally agreeing with you. Zeus was too though . . . which one was the greater of the two? Good Question . . . one that we honestly don't want to find out . . . brr . .

 **Pwashington:** Third base? They got married at the end of the manga! One of my favorite manga of all time. One I refuse to write on because I think it is great as it is. I was sad, and yet overjoyed at the manga's completion. Saddened because the tale came to an end officially, overjoyed knowing that they got their happy ending.

 **Fanguy59:** Not by pixies, but glad you enjoyed the chapter! True, Titania and Oberon were part of Shakespeare, but they've become such iconic literature characters than many a reader has elevated them to the same levels of mythological beings.

 **UndeadLord22:** Oh, the canon is about to begin shifting . . . muhahahaha.

 **MadDan90:** Hopefully this wasn't posted as you began to crash lol.

 **Owieeey:** Thanks for reading!

 **Raging Cajun:** Stop trying to take Pervy's job . . . And no, that's not going to happen. Oberon won't allow it and Draconis and Artorias are not into that kind of thing.

 **DimensionDistorter:** To be fair to Jircniv, he knows it will take time and his lack of belief that Draconis would deliver is valid.

 **Loke13:** Thank you kindly.

 **Guest:** Thank you very much.

 **Awayuki:** Indeed it is an Ancient Magus Bride reference. I love that anime and manga quite a lot.

 **Generation Zero:** Ah, Toriko . . . I love that series. I had gotten away from many of the Shonen Jump serialized mangas, but Toriko entertained . . . STILL entertains me. A world where wild edibles exist everywhere? It's hilariously funny and fun . . . makes me hungry too . . . lolz. I do love the series, if anything gets wound up to 11 it's that series. Yet it's done comically well.

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** A lot of readers who commented enjoyed it. Were surprised by it, but did enjoy it. I also received P.M.s from those that hated it and trashed it without reasons.

 **Predictions? Worries? Ainz with a backbone?**

 **Review!**


	40. Chapter 37: Beginning of the Storm

**Overlord: The Exiled**

 **Author Notes and Disclaimer:**

* * *

Overlord and it's properties are the property of Kugane Maruyama and are licensed by YenPress.

 **Holy CRAP! It's been a WHILE!**

 **NO, I have not let the haters get to me and abandoned this fic. Summer has been very busy for me outside of the typing up this story at my desk at home.**

 **Firstly:** My family has gone through a series of medical operations. Myself included. Though my own operation was not originally really planned. Given the scheduling of my family . . . an older sister with Multiple Sclerosis (MS), her husband and my niece with Celiac Disease, a younger sister with Enriched Wheat reactions, my mother getting a Knee Replacement surgery, my dad getting chemotherapy for prostate cancer and having issues with his meds for his Bipolar with suicidal tendencies . . . add on my own Biopsy this past July . . . all of this over the course of May to August . . .

NOT how I planned my summer going on top of a full time job and my own plans for my career.

On a lighter note, all my results came back benign. So I'm just on the mend. My Dad will be fine. My Mom is healing VERY well. My sister and her family will deal with their issues as they always have, so not much change there even though it will be with them until their dying days, but they're making due.

 **Secondly:** On a lighter note, all this waiting in doctor's appointments, and resting in a bed from surgery has given my ample time to at the very least, brainstorm and put ideas on paper in at least a general outline for some issues I've been having.

 **Thirdly and Lastly:** Partly, mostly due to the above listed issues and recovery times, I admit to being distracted from what little free time I had available to sink my teeth into several games this summer that I had been waiting on for a while.

Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers being the biggest one of these. Add to that the long awaited (for those of us who knew about it) English Release of Trails of Cold Steel II a month before Final Fantasy XIV: Shadowbringers. Then Fire Emblem: Three Houses . . . you see where I'm going with this.

Can ya blame a guy?

 **There is a bit more, but I'll save that for the end of the chapter. Thank you SO much for your patience and support. I've made this chapter a bit longer than normal as a partial apology for the wait. Hopefully this long of a gap between chapters will not happen without my advanced notice next time.**

 **On with the show!**

* * *

 **Chapter 37: Beginning of the Storm**

* * *

To say that The Lair was on full scale, Red Alert was an understatement. When Chronos had [ _Greater Teleport_ ]'ed them into the healer's chambers the clerics and other medical staff had gone into hysteria as they laid eyes on a pale, crumbled Draconis. The sisters had to be pried off of their liege by the healers. Their concern and worry for their liege made quite clear as his breathing was deathly shallow.

The head cleric was one of Chronos's direct subordinates and ordered that the three highest ranking healers other than himself and Chronos tend to Lord Draconis and all others were to continue to tend those wounded. Draconis was carried off into a separate chamber by the elite healers.

This left Akame and Kurome on their knees in front of the doors like wounded puppies. Their hands intertwined in worry. Samael cursed under his breath. He really wanted to return and give that damnable sack of bones a lesson with his scythe, preferably, but knew better than to rush out on his own. They still had a campaign in the works after all.

He roared in fury and stormed out of the medical wards to the war rooms, his eyes smoldered with gray flames and his lips seeped flickering dragon fire. All those of The Lair gave the Commander a wide berth.

* * *

 **Great Tomb of Nazarick**

* * *

Ainz brooded as he sat upon the throne, his skeletal fingers steeped together in deep contemplation. Albedo had remained deathly silent in the throne room with him. The whole time, his eye flames had been completely extinguished as he mumbled and grumbled softly to himself. The Guardians had all been dismissed to continue their duties upon their return from the swamps with the exception of Cocytus.

The Ruler of the Frozen Glacier had expressed his deepest apologies to Lord Ainz for not being able to understand the true meaning of their Supreme One's words in the final moments of the duel between him and Esdeath.

Albedo knew something was bothering Ainz from that conversation when Ainz had apologized in return for not making his wishes clear enough. He had been looking at the NPC roster of the Great Tomb. Labeled now as the, "Personnel Roster". Esdeath's name had once been a part of the Shared Creators listed. A collaborative effort between Blue Planet, White Lace, and the guest . . . Draconis. When the two Supreme Beings had left Nazarick, Esdeath had been inherited as a subject of Draconis from both Blue Planet and White Lace. As a result, her name was expunged from the list

The Overseer of the Guardians of Nazarick personally despised their abandonment of Nazarick for reasons unknown. Yet those two Supreme Beings had abandoned them and not left the Ice Huntress to another remaining member, but given her to Draconis, The Exiled.

She tilted her head to the side and frowned as she tapped her chin with a finger while in thought.

Or should she call him The Self Exiled given what she knew from her reading of Nishikienrai's journal?

As she had learned more from the journal of Nishikienrai, she was discovering that not all had been well between them all. That they had argued over petty things and even had knock down drag out fights between each other at times. They had mostly patched things over and Ainz . . . no . . . _Momonga_ had been that constant glue keeping them all together, but they were not the steadfast, unified front she had believed their creators to be. Honestly it was frightful.

Esdeath was no longer even on the registry of "Personnel/NPCs" for Nazarick. Meaning that Ainz could not bring her back via the Guild System. It wasn't as if they could not have afforded it.

Ainz was reading through several topics written by his fellow guildmates before they had all left. After what he had found at the "Farm", he needed to be more selective in the collection of materials to supplant and support the current stocks. Reading over some work written by Punitto Moe, he let a thoughtful hum escape his teeth as he read over the information.

He never quite realized just how confused he had been with some of the phrases and sayings that his friend had quoted frequently in the past. A lot of it, honestly had gone over his head at the time. He partially blamed being distracted or busy, then again, he was beginning to have trouble remembering all those good times accurately. He looked down at the skeletal hand holding the papers and tomes scattered about.

 _Ever since coming here to this New World, something about me has changed . . . I just chalked it up to being the in the form of my avatar from YGGDRASIL, but what Draconis said . . . It is not a game anymore . . . He was right._

He checked the status of the coffers of Ainz Ooal Gown with the Guild Functions and mentally frowned.

Albedo gave him a confused and concerned look. Ainz seemed to be in extremely deep thought, so she kept herself busy by keeping all the information he demanded be brought to him organized. She was happy to perform such duties, as it made her feel useful. Never mind that she loved being in his presence alone, without the other Guardians. Ah! It made her feel like she was in the clouds . . .

Ainz was currently pouring over a series of tomes. They were the known as the [ _Spell Compendium_ ] written and posted by the Archsage Association of Arcanum forum site, or the "AAA" for short. Tabula and Ulbert had been a part of the forum. Merlin of Avalon had also been a part of the staff, though the Grand Archsage had been tight lipped concerning a few of the more ludicrous spells.

Momonga had also been a member of the forum, and did not blame Merlin for being a bit of a miser when it came to spell knowledge. For such information could tip the scales of power for many guilds and PvP battles. Merlin even had been open about posting the knowledge of [ _World Disaster_ ] in the open.

He remembered the forum chat during that decision. Tabula, Ulbert, Merlin, himself, and several other magic casters had been online for the discussion. Including the Rank 5 Player of YGGDDRASIL: Timeloop Conundrum.

* * *

 **Archsage Association of Arcanum**

 **X Years Ago . . .**

 **21XX Online Forum**

* * *

"So, who votes to update the new information on the Tier X unique spell [ _Grand Catastrophe_ ]?"

A series of chimes registered positive votes to do so. The Admin of the site waited a minute before considering the vote closed and speaking again.

"All of those opposed?"

Surprisingly, no one voted against it. The lack of opposition was a bit jarring for many there. Someone in the chat chimed in with a confused face emoji added to it.

" _Even Grand Archsage Merlin is okay with this?! Stop the presses everyone!"_

There was a number of "Lolz" and "ROFL" messages over the forum chat at that. Even Ulbert and Tabula had laughed at that comment. Merlin himself also laughed because he knew it was true, he was a miser with spells this strong.

" **I know I'm a miser with information regarding the strongest spells in the game, but really now. [ _Grand Catastrophe_ ] eats over half of your max Magic Points in a single cast. If it doesn't do its job it sucks. Over half your Maximum MP total, not your current. If you're at less than 60% you cannot even conjure the damn thing. Kind of a let down in my book."**

" _But the damage and area of effect are worthy of the class learning it grants:_ World Disaster _."_

Lot's of chat members nodded in agreement with Ulbert.

" **Oh, I do agree that the damage and effects are MORE than worthy of the title of 'World' in the name, but I'm looking at it from a pragmatic, extended fighting situation. But putting all of that aside, you have to kill the current holder of the Special Class to get the spell. Which means you risk getting smashed by the spell before you even acquire it . . ."**

The chat got eerily quiet at that statement. The thought of going about facing down the current holder of the Rare Class did not give much encouragement to the majority of the forum chat's current occupants.

The Admin of the chat forum chuckled before speaking again. "That IS true everyone. Now, let's go over the following 16 new spells discovered by the number 2 Guild of YGGDRASIL."

The chat came alive again at the prospect of new spells never seen before! It was moments like this that many of them played for.

* * *

 **Nazarick**

 **Present**

* * *

 _Ah, good times hahaAH. . . agh, dammit. The_ [Emotion Inhibitor]. _Wait a minute . . . Why did it not stop the anger I felt at the time?_

Ainz cradled his sharp skeletal jaw in a hand as he pondered the annoying passive ability.

 _It does not seem consistent. I've felt other emotions for shorter that were less intense before it kicked in . . ._ He seriously called to mind those past events and moments.

Most of the time, they had been the "positive" emotions, or the "happy" emotions that had been rapidly stamped out by the passive ability. The "negative" emotions of anger, loathing, and even a bit more with the "Lust" feeling around Albedo when she practically wanted to jump him stayed around longer or for more intense sensations before the [ _Emotion Inhibitor_ ] truly took hold and quelled his feelings.

 _Hmm . . . perhaps due to my being undead, more specifically a dreaded Overlord class Lich, the positive feelings of "joy", "happiness", and maybe even "love" are not something associated with the undead and especially not Elder Lich types._

He thought back on the old background info written into the Lich types.

 _Magic casters who remove their souls from their bodies through the use of a ritual and store them in a_ [Lich Phylactery] _purely to ensure they "live" long enough to plumb the abyss of magic. Though by doing so, their bodies rot completely away, thus the skeleton animated. Well, that's what some of the lore said. The actual execution for my racial classes and other powers were a tad different. I have no such_ [Lich _Phylactery] so I do not have to worry about THAT weakness. Still . . . a soul separated from the body is not normal, could this be the reason for my colder, more purely logical and less empathetic attitude lately? Is my soul still even here though?_

Ainz glanced down at his own person with a pondering mind.

 _I feel as if this change . . . now that I seriously think on it . . . is affecting my memories as well. I don't clearly remember certain details like I used to. Hmm . . ._

Ainz took up a writing implement and opened a blank journal. _Perhaps I should begin to write down occurrences and events of significant importance and plans as a kind of fall back should my memory become hazy?_

He was about to begin writing his current concerns when he glanced at Albedo out of the corner of his sockets. After a moment or two staring at her, she seemed to notice his gaze and looked over at him from her work.

"Yes Ainz-sama?" The succubus Overseer of the Floor Guardians set down the book she was browsing and shuffled his direction, her wings shifted slightly against her gown.

Setting the pen in his hand to the side, Ainz sat back and crossed his arms over his ribcage. Giving a deep, 'harumph', his eye flames narrowed in the equivalent of a leer. He shifted a bit in unease before resting his hands on either armrest of his elegant desk seat. A tapping echoed through the room as his index finger rapped against the fine darkened wood.

"Albedo. I find that the recent debacle with Draconis and Esdeath has revealed to me several key bits of information that I have overlooked. As such, I wish to make corrections in that regard."

He held up a bony hand to forestall her words as her eyes brightened a bit, ready to dole out her duties as the Overseer of the Guardians of Nazarick.

"I believe that as much as Draconis is to blame for provoking my anger, I too provoked him via careless action. We are both to blame."

Albedo naturally, bristled at his words. "Ainz-sama! You are not to blame for this incident. The Exiled is at fault for interfering with your most excellent mission."

"Do you really believe that?" Ainz's voice was one of cold, hard questioning. Albedo froze on the spot, her wings rigid as Ainz's aura simmered darkly. Gulping down the words she was about to give voice to, she turned her eyes down to the posh carpet floor. Ainz continued when he saw her become rather contrite. "Your frozen words and rigid bearing tell me all I need to know."

He held a hand up and cast [ _Mage Hand_ ] a simple, Tier I spell that allowed the caster to pick up an object no more than 10 to 20 pounds and put it elsewhere or bring it to their hand. He picked up the journal of Nishikienrai that Albedo had been reading. The woman felt a chill of dread go through her spine as he opened it and flipped through the pages until he reached her bookmark.

"Ah. I remember these days now that I look over them closely." His voice was . . . humored? Nostalgic? She could not tell. Ainz tensed for a moment as he was chuckling, his laughter died down and he muttered a curse under his breath that she barely registered. "Seems I am on the right track with the [ _Emotion Inhibitor_ ]. Positive feelings get squashed faster than negative ones. Hmm . . . Annoying and vexing. Damnable devs."

She quirked a brow and tilted her head in confusion. Obviously he was irritated by something, but what? Her thoughts halted as he turned his gaze to her.

"You have read a fair amount of Nishikienrai's journal. Given what you have read, I wish for you to answer me, honestly and without deceit! Nor will you omit anything either in regards to your feelings on the matter I ask of you. Do you understand that we, as the Supreme Beings of Nazarick, have had our own issues? That we messed things up at times? That we . . ." his eye flames glittered dangerously. "were not perfect?"

He cast a simple spell, the runes of Tier Magic flashed briefly before she answered. She did not feel affected by anything though, and thus, Albedo remained silent for a time. She thought back to Cocytus's boldness, nay! Audacity! In requesting certain concessions during the Lizardman conquest, and how Ainz had been not angered, but pleased! In direct contrast and defiance of what they thought he would demand of them, he proved to be incomprehensible to them. Was this her time? Her turn to face such a thing?

"I . . ." Ainz looked at her expectantly and she gulped nervously. "Please forgive my impertinence Ainz-sama. Reading through Lord Nishikienrai's journal has been shocking and profound. We are quite aware of issues like that of the rifts between Lords Touch Me and Lord Ulbert. I did not realize that there were others like many of the other Supreme Beings such as Lord Bellriver and those who did not agree with many things outside of the Great Tomb of Nazarick."

Ainz nodded slowly as Albedo continued.

"I understand from the Journal of Lord Nishikienrai, that Draconis exiled himself to not spread further rifts in the Surpeme Beings, but I find it surprising that a number of them agreed to let him visit as a guest and even helped him create Esdeath! I would never have imagined Lords White Lace and Blue Planet to go so far for an outcast."

Ainz nodded again as he recalled those days. The act of creating a NPC, even though the three of them had paid out of their own pockets to increase the limit for Data Crystals and space in the Great Tomb, by a player who was not a member of the guild had sparked enough negative feelings that the group had called for a vote to either allow it, or nix it. They had waited a full half month for everyone in the guild to chime in.

It had been a close thing, with Bukubukuchagama being the deciding vote. She ruled in favor of it, prompting an argument between her and Ulbert, with Bellriver mediating between the two. While Ulbert's argument made sense . . . that a NPC and the data it would take up should not be made by an outsider, Chagama had refuted him telling him that it would end up helping them in the long run as a back up guardian for the 8th Floor in addition to Cocytus.

Blue Planet and White Lace had been wanting to come up with a new NPC in the first place. During one of his rare visits, Draconis suggested off hand that they think of a huntress, a woman that could appreciate the wilds and fury of nature and the deadly cold beauty ice could offer. They had loved the idea, Blue Planet at the concept of the imagery, and White Lace because he loved making beautiful female NPCs. Peroroncino did not have to be convinced, he was on board immediately at the thought of another pretty female, much to his older sister's annoyance.

The result had been Esdeath. A beautiful, fierce, deadly huntress. Bellriver, being their strategist, had no qualms with adding a last ditch, NPC guardian to the 8th Floor roster. Especially when he wasn't having to pay out of pocket for the data increase. Bellriver had countered the opposed factions arguments with citing that Draconis would pay 80 Percent of the cost to create her and to expand the data space for Nazarick. That was a big convincing argument considering the price to expand again. Ulbert had grudgingly agreed at that point, but demanded the concession of not letting Draconis write her background.

Draconis had oddly agreed. White Lace and Blue Planet had written Esdeath's background and every member of Ainz Ooal Gown had read it over and agreed on it.

When White Lace and Blue Planet had informed Momonga that they were leaving the game for good, they both requested that Momonga change the background a bit with the Guild Weapon's functions. Thus, Draconis had become the final master of Esdeath as a kind of thank you for their fun times and inspiration in her creation. They had told him to give the message to him after they had left.

Draconis had been quite humbled to receive such an honor and gift.

 _My memory really is hazy now. Damn it. How could I forget such a big detail? Looks like I should get serious about keeping a journal of things like Nishi-kun did. But for now . . . Where_ is _that spell Draconis used? I know the_ [Spell Compendium] _is several volumes, but five 1,000 page volumes? Really now . . ._

He could feel his jaw clack open at the massive size of the books on his desk. Normal desks would have shattered under their weight, but his was magically reinforced so it was no issue.

"Indeed. Umu! As shocking as that information may be to you Albedo, remember that despite differences, Draconis very much honored our agreements in the past. This is another one of the times where his ideals clash with our own. Please continue to organize the paperwork while I continue my search."

Ainz spoke with a firm, but patient and calm voice that set Albedo at ease as he continued looking through the tomes.

"I also give you permission to continue reading through Nishikienrai's journal. If you have questions, do not be afraid to ask them of me." Seeing her clear hesitation despite his words he mentally sighed. "If you must do so, consider that final part an order."

With her hesitation vanishing with his decree that it was an order rather than a request, Albedo bowed and continued to make her rounds about the papers scattered across his office.

 _Gods above that was_ draining _! If I'm going to have to play it like that with simple requests . . . then this is really going to drive me nuts. Ah~~! I just wanna bury myself in bed, but I can't sleep!_

Returning to the [ _Spell Compendium_ ] volume that he had open, he redoubled his focus.

While the spells written within the tomes of the veritable lodestone of spells and their descriptors were categorized in alphabetical order, they were broken up into the various different schools and broad genres.

The genres of magic were: Arcane, Divine, Spirit, Nature, and others.

Following that break down, they were divided further into the schools: Universal, Abjuration, Conjuration, Divination, Enchantment, Evocation, Illusion, Necromancy, and Transmutation for a total of nine.

The schools of magic made sure that if you really wanted to be good at your craft, you focused in your specialty. Doing such a thing allowed for specialized focus and bonuses to any spells of that chosen school, the downside was that to other schools of magic, fortunately of the player's choice, became locked out.

Many players initially complained, but the devs had not budged. After the realization that dying was an easy way to reset your classes and as such, certain spell choices, most ceased complaining. Naturally, most people never, ever forbid themselves from Evocation. After all, that's where the majority of the damaging spells came from. Yet more than a few unusual builds had become highly sought after due to their other methods of ruining a person's day.

Then about half way through the game of YGGDRASIL's lifespan, the devs did away with the forbidden schools ruling, but maintained the bonuses and perks of ultra focusing. So most players chose a select number of utility spells and "back up" spells to throw people off with during PvP or to shore up weaknesses in a party during dungeons crawls and raids, but still focused on their play styles by mainly shoring up on the spells from their school as the majority of ones spell list.

However, they did place restrictions on portions of the spell lists by Class Requirements or Forbidden Magics for certain Classes. Karma also played a part in certain spell selections. Not to mention power output and other things like resistances could be class and/or Karma based. It was the reason why Ainz himself could not cast healing magic or [ _Raise Dead_ ].

It was impossible even with a wand filled with the spell. The only way he was able to use one was with one of his ten God Tier rings; [ _Ring of Wand Mastery_ ]. The ring allowed him to wield any wand with any spell. An extremely powerful accessory in any magic caster's possession.

While a wand or rod with spells attached to it was very convenient, it was also expensive, with a limited number of casts available before the tool turned to dust. Granted, Ainz _could_ bring things back without a wand of [ _Raise Dead_ ] or the more powerful [ _Resurrection_ ], but they would be undead . . . a zombie, skeleton, or wraith. Or some other form of undead, but most assuredly _not_ alive. If they were too weak, then they became mere thralls and mindless puppets. Strong enough . . . and the results became a bit unpredictable. But the target would almost always be permanently altered by the whole warping of their being.

Naturally, as a basic lich and then as an Overlord undead, he selected Necromancy as his specialty. By making use of his unique ability [ _Dark_ Knowledge], he had increased his spell capacity to absurd levels and had a plethora of other magics at his command from most of the schools. Though the majority of his capacity was indeed Necromancy, specializing even further in the [ _Instant Death_ ] class of magic. A Role Play theme that in high end Player versus Environment or PvE it was subpar, high middle tier at best. In Player versus Player, or PvP, it was a high tier build at best.

This was due to many players buffing themselves to render [ _Instant Death_ ] effects moot, or so low that it was a nonfactor. It was one of the reasons he had hunted down his rare class: Eclipse. Which helped him still remain viable even if a player had equipment to reduce and prevent the instant kill mechanics of many of his spells. He could remember a few targets of his screaming that he was a cheating hacker when it was his special rare class that permitted him to bypass a lot of the anti-Instant Death equipment protections and still instant kill them with good set ups and planning.

In PvE most bosses and other special monsters were flat out immune to instant kill mechanics. As such, he had made that his incentive to max out his spell list number to gain spells to let him still be effective when his signature spells failed. It was a combination of his ludicrous spell list and his utter memorization of all of it that made him unpredictable and the party "Wild Card" slot whenever they had partied up in the past.

One versus one he would take the lose of the first round, but normally that also meant dying and having to level back up to strength unless it was official PvP where the loss would not penalize you with level loss.

" _ **It's no longer a GAME!"**_ Draconis's words echoed in Ainz's skull.

 _He's right. I've been learning, but not in the same way that he probably has gone about it. Draconis was always more the kind to explore it himself rather than learn it through second hand experiences of words of the forums. Even though the information in the final year and a half of the servers was more reliable and less misdirection from the info wars. We still never discovered everything as a Player Base. The damned shitty devs made the game way too open and wickedly punishing for the underprepared. At the time of the end of the servers, the total amount of the game we unlocked as an entire community was around 70 percent. Who knows what was missed._

Momonga flipped the pages and the flames within the voids in his sockets flared. He had found the right section of this volume to find that pesky spell! His sockets dimmed when he saw the number of pages it was . . . over 100 . . . great . . .

By the end of YGGDRASIL's run, of the ludicrous number of spells actually recorded, only around 73 Percent of the spells in the game had been recorded and categorized by several factors. That number had been around 4,832 spells total out of more than 6,000 that the devs had teased the player base about. Ainz himself was one of the very few players with a Personal Spell List of more than 600. Still, he knew less than 1,000 spells that he could actually cast. Still though, the fact that he knew them all by memory and what they all did was a mark of pride for him. Very few could say such a thing.

Even then, a fair chunk of them were for the sake of theme rather than player effectiveness. A price to pay for his Death magic. Then again, many considered Necromancy to be the same as Death magic, just not as specialized. In many respects, they were correct. _Instant Death_ magic was another . . . or rather . . . _specialized_ focus of the Necromancy school.

Yet he was still limited. That was due to the ruling of MP in the game. No Magic Caster could replenish MP after being spent except by real time restoration, needing 8 full hours before being back to their maximum MP cap. No MP Potions existed, not even via Cash Shop, it would break the game too hard for those playing non magical classes. When spells could level entire parties to nothing in a single cast . . .

Nevermind that players could easily buy accessories and consumable items to stave off Instant Death effects and other similar powers. That was why he loved [ _Grasp Heart_ ] so much. Even if the spell failed to kill, it paralyzed and stunned for crucial seconds. It was a trait of many "Save or Die" spells as they all called them. That they would fail to kill their targets, so secondary effects were often a part of them to offset the chances of failure, which often were higher than he would like, especially against opponents that were of the same or higher level than him. At least until he had reached level 100.

Only a handful of Boss type monsters and Raids were weak and therefore vulnerable to Instant Death spells. Even then, it was usually under a set number of circumstances when they became vulnerable.

[ _Soul Enervation_ ] which he had used against Draconis was a Tier X spell. He had gone to it in his anger knowing the ludicrous Spell Resistances Dragons had, and that as a Player, Draconis would have buffed his latent racial abilities as high as possible. He was a Tank Role . . . there was no way that he would not increase his defenses more than his attack power. It made no sense to do otherwise.

The Tier X spell was of the Necromancy school but was not a Death Effect. It was a life force effecting curse that had the power to [ _Ability Drain_ ]. Due to his classes and more importantly, due to his rare class, his [ _Ability_ Drain] damage to the target's stats was turned from a normal time limited debuff, to permanently lowering the stats of those weak enough to be affected in addition to it dealing unmitigated damage to their HP. The only way to get rid of the drain . . . was to die . . . or kill the caster.

 _I can't possible have dealt the maximum possible damage and drain to him though . . . or did I?_

His dark eye flames traversed downward, to the blood crimson orb in his abdomen.

The World Item was effective against Dragon Types . . .

 _Ah. I remember now. Part of it's powers was to allow me to make use of_ [Dragon Slayer] _powers without having to use other equipment to do so. It even affects my spells._

Ainz was searching through the section that matched the classifications for the Super Tier Spell that Draconis had cast which had revived not just the slain Lizard men, but the a portion of the environment as well!

Damn . . . forty pages into the section and he still had not encountered it. Just how many spells started with the letter "C" anyway?!

As an Undead Overlord, Ainz was well aware that a large amount of strong Holy attribute and Healing spells were off limits, forever barred from his Spell List due to his undead, evil nature. Negative energy spells healed him instead of harming him. Even that slime ball that summoned the Skeletal Dragons back during his encounter with Clementine had healed the Skeletal Dragons with Negative Energy according to Naberal's report afterward. So certain rules still applied in the New World. Naberal Gamma's play by play of the fight confirmed this to him.

Crimson eye flames landed on the spell he was hunting for that Draconis had proclaimed . . . at long last! He browsed the words of the spell's description with a chalk white index bone as his sight followed.

"Ah . . . here it is. Super Tier Spell: [ _Freya's Embrace_ ] usable only by Positive Karma, Healer and Holy classes. That is all to be expected. Oh . . . That's risky. A lifeforce cost of . . . that's insanity."

Albedo, growing curious at Ainz's disbelief, tip toed over and looked at the spell in question as well.

"The spell can only be cast if the magic caster's Karma is positive. Trying to cast the spell with negative Karma invokes a judgment ranging from HP loss equal to a total of 80 Percent of their life total . . . upon the caster instead. Damage taken from this judgment cannot be healed for 48 Hours?! The Karmic Cost of the spell is fluid based on the total number of lives restored in this manner . . . [ _Experience Drain_ ] based upon the number of lives restored by the spell? Acts as a [ _True Resurrection_ ]?!"

"Umu . . . A High Risk, High Reward spell. Now I see why he crumbled under my spell so easily when I had not expected him to. His Karma was low, meaning he was more vulnerable to the spell when I hit him with it. In reality it was more of a blessing for us rather than a boon for him."

Albedo frowned at the ruler of Nazarick. What did he mean?

Sensing her confusion, he elaborated now that he had this new information. The difficult part was how to word it.

"Karma is . . . a measure of ones deeds and those with high positive, or high negative amounts gain certain boons and flaws depending on their professions. Draconis is a Holy Knight akin to Touch Me, though far more faith inclined. The higher his good standing . . ."

"The stronger his powers are." Albedo began to catch on. "So when this powerful magic was used, he lost much of it as a price he had to pay. His powers weakened."

Ainz nodded firmly. "Umu. Now, combined with the spell I hit him with, he must be suffering terribly."

Albedo frowned. Even reading what she had with Nishikienrai's journal, she could not help but feel that Draconis had gotten what he deserved for interfering.

"Forgive me Lord Ainz, but you do not think that what you did to Draconis, The Exiled was what he deserved? He interfered with your plans."

Ainz closed the massive tome and utilized the cantrip of [ _Mage Hand_ ] to float the tomes one at a time back to their shelves. After doing so, he crossed his fingers together and gave Albedo a look that made her shiver a bit. It was not the heated glare of anger, but of deep thought and reflection.

"Yet in interfering, he also gave me the outsider's perspective . . . unvarnished and pure despite the conflict it gave birth to between us. A perspective of someone on the other side of the spectrum of that human concept called 'virtue' and 'righteousness'. It is something we should keep close in mind."

Albedo frowned, not truly understanding the meaning in Lord Ainz's words. How would understanding a filthy human concept such as goodness help Nazarick? They were all monsters through and through. Humans were dirty, weak beings. Even Draconis had no humans with him when he showed up in front of them immediately after Esdeath's end. She had sensed as much from them.

Seeing Albedo frowning so fiercely in thought made Momonga begin to think as well. The other point that Draconis had made some time ago, or at least, what felt like it, rang in his mind. Since then he had gone back through and restudied up on the Floor Guardians a bit. Shalltear was a work in progress ever since he had to kill her and revive her via the Guild Base functions. Her apparent guilt for failing the Great Tomb of Nazarick and subsequent punishment . . . pleasure? He did not feel comfortable with that lingering thought line.

Really now . . . she seemed to have fiercely _enjoyed_ being turned into a chair!

Regardless! Shalltear now seemed a good deal more receptive that not all can just be swept under the rug with power. He would get to that point at a later day. Cocytus was a relatively easy Guardian to teach given his soldier like adherence to orders and commands. Though he would have to address the misunderstanding leading to Esdeath's demise. He did feel . . . not guilty . . . no, not that he now thought on it. Frustrated? That seemed like a more appropriate term for it now.

Aura and Mare would also be relatively simple to teach given their child like natures. He did remember Yamaiko, who was a teacher saying that youths were easier to teach when they liked their teacher. As such, since they adored him . . . well that was a weight of his bony shoulders.

Victim would not be an issue at all. Given his nature to die for the Tomb, well, he was not insincere in the least with his words to the angel who's lot in life was to die for the defense of the Guild. Gargantua was also mainly just a huge, colossal defender of the guild much in the same manner as Cocytus.

Demiurge would be a challenge, his inherent intellect something that Ainz was beginning to realize was just as much of a weakness and problem as it was a powerful tool and weapon stronger than any spell or sword. Ainz was becoming keenly aware of the over thinking the demon was turning over in his mind. Never mind the superiority complex. Esdeath was literally level 100 like the rest of them, yet he considered her a speck due to her background settings and his own. THAT mindset would prove fatal to the Archfiend.

Given the now limited ability to regain funds, materials, and other resources like they used to in YGGDRASIL, regaining even snippets of wealth and materials used from their own coffers would take years . . . decades. Picking fights with everything out there was shortsighted and self destructive now. Especially when there were forces out there every bit as strong as them on individual basis, and with his knowledge of Draconis's forces existing in the New World as well as that of Avalon judging from the Dragon Knight's own admission . . .

 _Argh . . . yeah, I cannot afford to have Demiurge, or really any of the denizens, the children of Nazarick, provoking fights with them if they encounter them. While they would not risk a World Item if they had one, players against NPCs like what I did with Shalltear would not end well for us. While Nazarick's funds are limitless in the eyes of the New World native here, having repeated revivals of NPCs that DO cost Gold is not sustainable. All they would have to do is kill them outside of Nazarick repeatedly on battlegrounds of their choosing . . ._

 _Draconis won't provoke war between the two of us by invading, he's not that stupid, nor that crazy. He would likely draw Nazarick's forces out and perform a kind of unorthodox siege warfare on us. I've never been to his personal Headquarters/Base, so I've no idea what kind of base it is, how large it is, or what defenses he's set up._

 _Avalon, if it is here in full . . . I'd rather not fight them. Their defenses are like Nazarick's in brutality, but on the fighting side rather than traps. They possess a_ [Fortress Defense] _style guild base, which you have not choice but to invade like a war front. It would be mutual destruction for anyone to attack anyone else's base directly. Yet open battle outside of our bases would be . . . unpleasant. Hmmm . . ._

* * *

 **Beastmen Kingdoms**

 **Unknown Location**

* * *

A beastman of full mane of fur sat upon a throne of crimson stained heart stone. The massive build of the man fill out the massive centerpiece of the chamber. All around him, the room radiated the symbols of power and oppression. A rule with an iron fist and terror induced loyalty. Strength was everything . . . and the _only_ thing. Around him sporadically across the floor lay beastwomen in differing forms: feline, lupine, even a few avian like individuals. They reclined upon posh cushions on the floor.

One would think at first glance that they were the favored of the rugged, hulking beastman upon his throne. Yet a second look would see the lusterless, chipped and bloodied chains around their necks and ankles that traveled from their person to several chairs with true cushions of lavish design and comfort. There were a plethora of these far more regal pieces of furniture scattered about seemingly haphazardly.

Yet if one was to look at them from directly above, one would see something wholly different and shocking. A design, an emblem of a massive set of claws ripping apart the skies.

The majority of these sets were currently vacant of their owners, but out of them all, only six had women chained to them. Some of them were dressed in scintillating outfits. Others not so fortunate were in nothing but rags, but one of them, the one chained to the central most throne with the sole occupant of the room bore nothing at all.

A dark figure approached the beastman reclining upon his grand seat. Each of the females turned their faces away from him and cowed, desperately trying to avoid his attention. His armor was blackened and bloodcrusted, the putrid smell of death and decay followed him like a plague. His tail swished slowly as he took a knee before the reclining beastman.

" **Your Magnificence . . . I return with news concerning the invasion of the Dragon Kingdom."**

The women shuddered in dread at the rasping, hollowed out voice of the wolf-like, armored War General. An abomination even by their standards, he had ripped the previous ruler to shreds with ease. Absurd ease. Strength was the greatest trait of the beastman kingdoms, yet a wolfman like this had risen up out from nowhere. Yet he called His Magnificence his liege lord . . . it chilled them to the core.

"This had better be worth it." The beastman upon his personal throne growled in aggravation. The naked form of the beastwoman shivered in fear. He got violent when angered, the previous female had died by his hands the last time someone angered him. She did not wish to become the next one splattered across this floor.

" **Yes, Your Magnificence."**

The darkened figure placed a torn piece of cloth upon the floor. The female was kicked off of her cushion. She gasped in pain but dared not to cry out as she crawled on all fours to pick up the item. She frowned as she lifted it off the floor. The material was unlike anything she had seen, much less felt. Silken and soft, it reminded her of better days. Days when her tribe lived upon the open fields and though it may have been hard to find food, they had not suffered like she did now.

Crawling back to the ruler upon his seat, she bowed her head and lifted it up with both her hands. Feeling the item leave her palms, she found it hard not to sigh in despondency. She had not felt such luxurious, much less normal cloth upon her skin in so long she had genuinely forgotten what it felt like to know any fabric's texture lest it be torn asunder as she was ravaged by the man holding her chains.

The sound of sniffing met their ears for a moment before a low chuckled made all present save for the armored wolf beastman shudder.

"Mm hahahaha AHAHAHAA! So a strong one appears . . . excellent! I do find this pleasing War General, pleasing indeed! What of these rumored reports from the other clan mongr – _representatives_ ~?" The lounging ruler caught his words and changed them at the last second, but none of the females present missed the near botched insult.

He ruled with absolute power, not a single clan leader of the Beastman Kingdoms could best him in combat. He had even slaughtered the abominations that killed all the inhabitants of The Silent City, all three of the Soul Eaters! Who in their right mind would challenge such a being?! No one spoke of his feat of power because he demanded that word not be spread.

At first, many thought this as an act of humility, odd for their kind, but not unheard of. However, when he slaughtered the previous ruler and took the throne for himself, killing the whole line of succession and then all branching families and tribe members . . . his power and cunning brutality was not questioned again.

He had feasted upon all of them, devoured them, bones and all. A monster among terrifying monstrosities. As were his associates . . .

The War General nodded firmly. **"Clan Leader Terramist is dead. Slaughtered with ease by a magic caster of extraordinary power. Others have been more . . . prudent and not stupidly lost resources trying to fight these new defenders blindly."**

"Terramist was a inept, shit eating poser. Tier IV magic and he thinks that he measures up to a legend . . . What a sack of shit." The Ruler of Beastmen sneered as he spat his vindicative commentary. He turned the cloth over in his hands curiously. "I know this symbol . . . or at least I think I do."

A new voice echoed in the chamber and all occupants turned to the source. Shrouded in hides and furs, the newcomer frowned at the Ruler of Beastmen as he took his seat. The beastman female chained to the seat he took immediately set about using what little magic she knew to clean his shoes and clothing from his excursion outside. Her long, luscious tail swayed back and forth in relief. Even the Ruler of Beastmen acknowledged this man's abilities and she was grateful that he was not as brutal as the Ruler was.

Jet black, glossy fur covered his bare arms and face, that resembled more jaguar that anything remotely human. His form compared to the Ruler of Beastmen was lithe and limber . . . more like a sprinter than a warrior. A long tail of black fur swayed to and fro.

Even then, she knew not to risk her master's ire, for when he _did_ grow angry . . . well . . . she had learned that there were fates far worse than death . . .

Not daring to speak, for she was not given permission to do so, she bowed low, kissing his feet when she finished her cleansing of his clothing and body. He smirked even as the Ruler of Beastmen growled in annoyance.

"Speak your mind or begone from this chamber."

"Your memory needs refreshing you muscle headed brute, but if you're going to be so hostile, then I'll leave. Come along."

He took up the chain tying the beastwoman to the seat he rose from. She nodded and stood on her feet after he was fully up and walking away. As he reached the shadows of the exit, he came to a halt, the clacking footfalls of his shoes echoed in the chamber.

"Be wary . . . Dragons have finally reared their presence. Underestimate them at your own peril, Your Magnificence. For all your vaunted muscle, you have yet to effectively use the one in your skull."

His voice only barely hid the veil of scorn and disdain before he turned and left the room. The woman followed closely behind him.

The wolfman War General flinched and backed up a step, the women in the chamber cringed and shuddered.

"Hmph, noisy cockroach . . ." The Ruler spat derisively. After a moment of tense silence, he frowned and began to mutter to himself just loud enough for all of them to hear. "Waait . . . did that . . . did that . . . _bastard_ just insult me? Me . . . ? Ruler of ALL Beastmen?"

The naked female at his feet began to shake without reserve and began to weep in fear as he jerked the chain holding her captive. She whimpered as he pulled her closer. He began to sputter, growl, and tremble in outrage.

"That . . . _insolent_. . . ragtag, **son of a bitch!"** He yanked hard on the chain, lifting the naked beastwoman of the floor with a pained and terrified yelp. He caught one of her legs out of the air and swung her into the floor like a meat club. A sickening _**splat**_ resounded in the chamber and the other chained women shrieked at the fate of their fellow captive.

He lifted her broken form, still somehow alive, but dying from the massive internal injuries. Her ribs punctured her lungs, her sternum shattered, bleeding to death internally from that alone. Her conscious remained, cursing her to feel all the brutality. Her jaw was shattered, the only noises coming from her were gargles of her choking on her own blood.

" **Arrogant!"** She came down again as he swore angrily. Another sickening squelch and snap of bones and organs.

" **Know it all!"** Her arms flailed in all kinds of directions as she was ripped from the stone floor and into the air again like a ragdoll. Her blood, vomit, and teeth flew about before the Ruler of Beastmen slammed her into the ground again, her body punctuating every enraged word from his lips.

"Fucking!" _**Crack . . . squelch!**_ "Idiotic!" _**Splat . . . Crunch!**_ "Sorry ass excuse for a . . .!" _**Smash! SNAP!**_ Her leg, used like the hilt of a club, or flail, ripped away like a blood filled hose, her corpse landing on one of the other females, making her scream in horror and fear that she would be next.

He huffed and puffed and roared, his hate filled scream shook the room and drove the women to hide behind the seats they were bound to. The War General merely stood stone cold in the presence of wanton anger.

" **Shall I call him back that you may enforce your authority?"**

The massive bodied Ruler of Beastmen huffed and puffed, the scarlet in his face and the veins slowly ceased to bulge upon his massive frame. He slammed a fist down on the armrest firmly in one last expression of livid anger.

"Hah . . . hah . . . grrr . . . no, let the bastard be the slippery eel that he is. He'll get what's coming to him. The bastard is of no use in combat, power is all that matters. He might be a thinker, but that's all he can do. Strength is all that matters in the end. No matter what schemes within schemes he's got working, Power, POWER!" He shook a fist in the air as he roared his declaration to no one. "POWER and that alone smashes all plans and schemes into dust! Wits and skill are for weaklings."

Farther down the halls, the jaguarman shook his head in disdain for the roar and death of the female in the chamber he'd left.

"What a petulant man-child. Tsk!" He flipped a creation of the Minotaur Sage . . . what he had called, the "Butterfly Knife" around in his free hand, the handles and blade whipped about with a rhythmic clacking and clicking. The woman, felt mesmerized at the deftness in which he did so. The small, razor sharp enchanted knife whirled about index, middle, and ring fingers, sliding over knuckles and clacking shut, then open both down toward his pinky and then back up towards his thumb.

He flipped the small weapon shut and slide it up his sleeve with a single hand motion.

"Come, we have other planning to take care of." She nodded vigorously and followed him. Her instincts told her that he had removed her from the room to spare her witnessing the Ruler's outrage and murder of his captive.

They proceeded down a series of expansive corridors, large enough to fit four war chariots across and tall enough to allow the height of three war trolls. Only their footfalls echoed down the empty halls. There were no guards, no servants within these halls. Just bones and dust and grim from disuse. Abandoned and nothing of their former glory. The jaguar like man despised this situation. Yet he was not strong enough to usurp power from that crazed muscle bound buffoon! He mentally cursed his lack of power. All previous attempts at subtle assassinations had failed, utterly.

Fortunately he had never been implicated in all those attempts, but he was not about to let it cost him further lives. His people had suffered enough under this megalomaniac. But how to combat something so damned powerful that even ancient treasures of the Beastmen Kingdoms failed to kill him?!

It was absurd!

He marched onward until he arrived at the chambers he desired to see. Within lay a number of pedestals, each displaying a proud treasure. He could do nothing to touch them though, as each was protected by a Guardian so fierce that none would survive the theft.

"One day, you shall receive your judgment and we will rejoice . . ."

His voice vibrated with fearsome hatred that made the female behind him tremble. He motioned to a messenger at the doors. The young Rabbitman nodded and bowed in supplication to a superior.

"You! Go and call for a meeting of Clansmen Heads. It is past due for a meeting."

The young man nodded and scurried off.

* * *

 **Border of the Dragon Kingdom**

 **The Lair**

* * *

Chronos and the healers under his command were baffled at the infliction upon their Lord. Draconis lay on the bed pale and clammy. So busy had he been with ascertaining the truth of the encounter between Esdeath and Cocytus, that he had not considered watching for the possible outcomes of the argument between Ainz Ooal Gown and Draconis Brightblade. He had held Samael back from launching into full fledged assault due to several factors.

Firsly: They were outnumbered. Even if not all of Ainz Ooal Gown's Guardians attacked in response, they would be pressed without their Lord's commands and advice. He himself knew of a few of the Guardians, but that knowledge only amounted to so much with the inclusion of reason two . . .

There were too many innocents nearby. The Lizardmen had only just been brought back and he knew that Lord Draconis would not wish to catch them in yet another battle that would be inescapable. To subject them to yet another terrifying clash of powers would be too much.

And lastly, the worst reason, but still a key factor, was that despite disagreements, Lord Draconis did have fond memories with them, enough to warrant his concern rather than blind outright hatred. Yet it was this reason, at least in part . . . that had given birth to this situation now.

From everything that he could tell via medical knowledge and divining magic, Draconis was drained of a portion of his vitality. All of his parameters were drastically decreased. Such a blow to his lifeforce was equivalent to losing three levels of power. Chronos was no fool, he had forbidden knowledge of certain aspects of The Lair, of his peers in the Guardians of Draconis's stronghold, but also of YGGDRASIL. It was the key factor as to why he had not said anything during their questioning of their lord shortly after arriving here in this New World.

He glanced to his direct subordinate, a female angel of lower rank in the celestial hierarchy, but still quite powerful. She was sworn to secrecy on certain matters. Details of power levels, things like "Parameters", and other such details that heavily influenced, though it did not completely rule, a person's existence.

As Draconis was laid upon the resting bed of the chambers, Chronos and his subordinate went to work, though they had been at it for hours now, there was no doubting the effects which held their lord in thrall.

"Lord Draconis will be severely hampered by this deficit in his power. To think that Ainz Ooal Gown was a wielder of such a spell!"

Chronos nodded in agreement with his assistant. Her honey amber locks spilled about a face of fair countenance, but her eyes were marred. Scars covered them and rendered her blind in the traditional sense. She "saw" with her magical senses, making her more sensitive and perceptive to fluctuations in their wavelengths and potency.

Above Draconis's resting form, was a magical display of their liege lord's "Essence". A "Profile" as Chronos knew it at. Some would call it an "Eidos" if they wished to become more fanciful. Regardless of what it was truly named, the Seraphim Empyrean made thorough scans of his lord's body as to pin down the ailment inflicted by the Overlord master of the Great Tomb of Nazarick.

His assistant frowned as she analyzed the information hovering above Draconis's form. A vague silhouette possessed multiple branching lines off of his center being. They were his various stats and racial effects, enchantments from equipment, and other technical bits of information that would make Todd drool to have the chance to analyze and dissect.

"Hmm . . . our lord's overall powers and abilities have dropped considerably."

His physical attributes were roughly 15% lower than normal. His magical attributes were in similar condition as well. Such a large drop in efficiency would normally only last until a set period of time passed them by, but even then such draining spells only lasted minutes, not hours!

He could also sense a dark haze over Draconis, the haze of death that Ainz Ooal Gown possessed. Though he did not believe it to be a curse that would harm his lord should they find a way to heal him, he was not certain if this was merely a mark signifying that it was the Overlord that did this, or a kind of scarring.

Then there was the issue of Draconis's Karmic Levels. Many of his powers were affected directly in strength and range by keeping a positive Karmic standing in the world. After making use of [ _Freya's Embrace_ ], a holy Super Tier spell of incredible power, his Karma had been expended for the sake of the Lizardmen. That had left him with precarious levels of positive Karma. Any lower and he would lose the Holy Knight and other powers he possessed.

Unlike other classes and races though, if he lost them due to his willingly committing atrocious deeds that would drop him below "Good" Karma, then merely raising it back up to positive levels would not simply grant him renewed usage of his Holy Knight and other tied abilities. He would have to undergo a redemption/repentance quest of some kind to earn them back. It was a balancing act that normally, Draconis was fairly adept at.

However, it seemed that recently, his dragon blood was far stronger than normal and his bouts of anger, though at genuine issues, was more prevalent. Though Draconis had reigned it in rather well given a few of the circumstances, Luserina's report about his anger at the young adult dragon of the New World was a bit concerning.

Chronos sighed heavily as he nodded in agreement. "Indeed they have Stella. Ainz Ooal Gown's spell was not something we had prepared for. Even our Lord Draconis did not anticipate this."

Chronos clasped his hands behind his back as he slowly circled the bed cradling their unconscious liege.

"It's unsettling. Ainz Ooal Gown, or rather Overlord Class Undead; Momonga has in depth knowledge of so many spells that it boggles the mind. For a single entity to possess so many that he can bring to bear at any given moment is astonishing . . . respectable and awe inspiring even."

Stella nodded, even though she was still rather taken back by Chronos praising an undead. "That may be so Lord Chronos, but to praise an undead abomination?"

The Seraphim Empyrean groaned and pinched his nose as he nodded in spite of his subordinate's indignation. Calmly taking her by the shoulders, he led her away and to a chair. Stella pouted at her senior's treatment, but did not resist.

"I speak of this in full confidence due to the knowledge I possess. Now, when we were still nestled upon the star of YGGDRASIL before being transported here . . . how oft was it that you heard news of the outside?"

Stella frowned in thought, her lips formed a thin straight line across her face. She was no ravishing beauty even as an angel, but homely. Her chocolate brown locks held in a braid that was wrapped into a bun just at the base of her neck.

"We heard things all the time thanks to the visitations of Queen Artorias and her Knights of the Round. They frequently spoke of certain trouble makers in the world and those that made life unbearable for those lacking power."

Chronos nodded as she spoke. It was true. Much of what The Lair had heard of from the outside world was through Draconis's word of mouth and from his wife, Queen Artorias and her own knights. Occassionally, they would have others, like his brother-in-law from Bakamatsu Genpei and his friends.

"I believe that Ainz Ooal Gown as an organization was shaped by the circumstances surrounding them. They were all hunted by humanity and mercilessly dealt with. No small wonder they retaliated and hunted humanity back in turn. Our Lord Draconis went though the same and was even a part of them at one point."

Stella nodded and frowned in sadness. It was true that many of the residents of The Lair were refugees of past conflicts and "hunts" by mankind. This was especially true of many of the heteromorphic, or "grotesque" races. Yet she knew that there were two sides to any coin. There was evil and good in every race. Lord Chronos knew many secret and deadly forbidden knowledges, and balanced them all precariously.

"Is that why Lord Draconis shows compassion to the Overlord?"

Chronos crossed his arms over his chest and frowned slightly as he tried to hunt for the right way to speak his thoughts.

"Partially Stella. The Overlord Momonga, according to Lord Draconis's own words, was something of a stabilizing factor for the more extreme elements of their cabal. While he did not do anything to outright stamp out their zealous hunts, he did instill a level of order to their antics. Not all of them were outright bloodthirsty fanatics. The Overlord now though . . . without anyone of their cabal left to commune with and share ideas and opinions with as an equal rather than a servant . . ."

Stella nodded sadly, knowing what it was Chronos was trying to get across.

"Lord Draconis is concerned that the Overlord will lose all semblance of that balancing factor of a moderate."

She shook her head sadly. "I do not know who holds the more turbulent burden. The Overlord with its lost companions and precarious state, or our Lord Draconis, who has no desire to outright stamp out the evil before it infects the world or will be obligated to do so if he cannot temper it."

Chronos sighed and tapped her gently on the head, which she protested mildly.

"That's quite enough of that depressing thought. We have a liege lord to mend. Let's get back to it."

Stella nodded with fierce determination and they went back to it.

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **Village of Tildeus**

* * *

Silver Tail sat upon soft green grass in a nearby field just outside of the village's fences and low rock walls. Her eyes tracked a patrol from Cecilia-sama's company of soldiers and knights. The air was cooling, as the first days of autumn began to close in on the continent. Her cool gray fur ruffled in the breeze and she found herself sighing. When was the last time she had felt so relaxed?

It was a shock, to be treated well and shielded from those who still felt ill will towards her. Surprisingly, few of the villagers kept a grudge against her or her captured clan members. Oh, a few of them still gave them all looks of loathing and hatred, but many of them just did not care anymore, content so long as their protectors were present.

Speaking of, their wardens were nothing like the harsh, cruel Alpha that Terramist had been. Far from it! They were fed and provided drink. Even a large, communal tent to sleep in. Their guards did not beat them or ravage their females in retribution, though they did warn those pushing their limits to tread lightly. Those among their number that did try to cause trouble were given ample warnings before actual discipline came down on their heads. That was something that she knew would never had happened under Terramist and his ilk.

The only warning you would get was a snarl and gnashing of teeth before your head went flying. Lady Cecilia had wielded powers and magic stronger than anything any of them had ever bore witness to in their lives. It was no small wonder that she lead these men and women.

Nevermind the pair of dragons that had shown up after Terramist's defeat and the flying, armored elf maiden! Yet as frightful as the dragons were to her and those she was with, they made no moves on them. They flew by overhead, though the elf was not with them, they worked with Cecilia's orders. That dragon's would assist these people was mind boggling to her. It also reinforced their behavior by a large margin. No one wanted to face an angry dragon.

 _Honestly! What were we thinking? Dragon Kingdom and we dared to believe that no dragons would actually retaliate? How foolish of us._

"Miss Silver Tail." She turned to face the man hailing her, her ears swiveled around before her head did. A young man with well fitted armor nodded to her. "Lady Cecilia wishes to see you at the communal tent as soon as you are able."

She nodded and stood from her spot. "I will go to her now."

The soldier gave her a short bow and left to carry out his other duties. As Silver Tail began to make her way back to the communal tent, she silently wondered what the Lady Cecilia could need her at the communal tent for?

Arriving at the specified location, it surprised her to see all the others of her clan also filing into the tent. Apparently this was more than just a private talk. Asking a few of her fellow beastmen about this, they all shrugged and gave her answers of little information.

Stepping into the tent, she saw Cecilia, her emerald hair like a fine curtain. The woman smelled like lavender and the winds. Silver Tail and many others were surprised to see a coyote like beastman like them standing just off to her left. There were a few others as well.

As everyone settled down, taking a seat upon the rugs scattered about the huge tent, Cecilia spoke.

"Beastmen and women of the Beastmen Kingdoms. I would like a present to you, one of your own. Jin Lu Quo is one of the first my liege and I encountered upon first meeting the people of the Dragon Kingdom. He has proven to be an open minded and wise person. I believe he would benefit you all greatly from what he has learned and experienced during his short tenure with us."

She gestured to the coyote heteromorph. They were surprised that he still wore his colors and the garb of his station, but even more shocking was that they seemed . . . higher quality than anything they could make themselves!

"Jin Lu Quo, I leave you to speak with your brethren. Should you need anything, call for one of my men at the entrances of the tent. They have been instructed to aide you should you need it."

He bowed graciously to Cecilia and Silver Tail could see it, the gratitude and respect in his stance. He had seen things . . . Things beyond them. There was also a sharp, clear intelligence in his eyes. A thinker more than a brute. Had this one been a group's Clan Wiseman? She pondered this as Cecilia left the tent.

"Brothers and sisters. I am Jin Lu Quo. Me and my brothers here have fought and lost to allies of the woman you yourselves lost to. They have power beyond everything I have ever thought possible. Yet they have been fair. If you have questions, please ask and my brothers and I shall answer."

Questions did indeed flow from many of them. Silver Tail held her own in reserve though, preferring to listen to those posed by her peers. She did not know how long this would last, but Jin Lu Quo showed himself to be both patient and keen minded.

Was it true that they had more than just humans in their army?

Yes, they did. Even others similar to them! That inhumans coexisted with humans and the other humanoid like races like dwarves and elves. All of that was remarkable to hear about, especially from a fellow beastman.

Where did they come from?

The mountains separating the Dragon Kingdom from the Baharuth Empire and Wyvern Rider territories.

How many like this woman's soldiers did he have?

He did not know exactly, but he did know that these men and women were his frontline troops. That information made them all glance back and forth at one another. His standard troops were all this strong?! What did that mean for his elites? Was the emerald maned female spellcaster one of his elites?

Being from a nation where strength ruled above all else, that tidbit of information silenced many of them. For such a powerful force to show such mercy to the defeated was unprecedented for them. For more than just them!

There was not telling how things would turn out now.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

 **A Day After the Encounter Between Ainz and Draconis . . .**

* * *

"He . . . what?" Lucia's voice was a dangerous growl at Todd as he relayed the events from the day before to Lucia in private. Schwarzer Todd frowned and only sighed in exasperation. Chronos had relayed all that had occurred between Ainz and their liege the previous day. He had to admit, objectively from one not present and one that delves both into the dark arts as well as alchemy and its thin veil of morality at times, Lord Draconis could be overbearing at times. True, he did try to temper it when he could, but he also did not tolerate several things, and wanton slaughter was one of them.

But even his liege was capable of being rather bullheaded at times.

Now though, his concern was not Draconis, but Lucia Thundercry, a woman who was know by their liege as being powerful, but a bit of a loose cannon with her emotions. An honest woman, but perhaps . . too honest.

"My Liege Lord Draconis is under the care of my peer, Chronos. After a full night of analyzing what now afflicts our liege, it has been determined that he has been stricken by an exceedingly powerful curse. For all of his powers, Chronos is not a pure healer and Cecilia's spell capacity lacks the needed spell for this particular curse. Likely it is due in no small part to the unique class powers Ainz Ooal Gown possesses. Both men provoked one another and . . ."

"And _nothing_ Todd . . ." Lucia growled again. "That guild has caused innumerable incidents during our time in YGGDRASIL. Having them here at all is a disaster for the New World."

Todd sighed tiredly. For all the good intentions that they put forth, there was still the matter that they were beyond the power and even comprehension of a fair portions of the denizens of this New World. That alone could visit untold havoc upon the populous. The fear of the unknown was why Draconis did not want to flaunt their powers needlessly, much less their high end abilities if he could avoid it.

From everything he had learned teaching the recruits of the Dragon Kingdom, Schwarzer Todd had swiftly and – for him at least – worriedly realized just exactly how powerful they were.

 _Not that I had doubted our Lord Draconis's words, but even YGGDRASIL's churches and other temples of sacred grounds held the power to_ _raise the fallen adventurers of neophyte ability should they die. Here, their most basic aspiring adventurers who go forth and perish can never be raised unleash through the wielding of the sanctified_ [True Resurrection] _which ignores all the prerequisites save the amount of time since death, and natural death of old age. Trying to crumbles their bodies to dust._

[ _True Resurrection_ ], Tier X spell of mandatory requirements at High End YGGDRASIL players who took on the role of Healer. Ignored even the need of a body. According to the [ _Spell Compendium_ ] writ by countless mages and clerics and other magic casters:

" _ **A spell to bring back the dead unlike any other. It need not even require a hair of the person desired to be brought back to life. Unlike it's previous spells**_ [Raise Dead] **_at Tier V, it does not need the body of the deceased. The Tier V spell requires the body relatively unmarred to use._**

 _ **Tier VIII**_ [Resurrection] ** _only requires a part of the body, but cannot raise those turned undead and killed, cannot raise Elementals and outsiders like angels or demons. In that limitation,_** [Raise Dead] _**and**_ [Resurrection] ** _are the same._**

 _ **Tier X**_ [True Resurrection] ** _ignores all of these previous limitations. The only remaining limit is the time frame and those who died of natural causes. Also, like all previous versions of the spell, if the subject does not want to be brought back, the spell will fail._**

 _ **We do not know the time limit on how long the deceased has been dead for the Tier X spell to fail is. Some think it to be more than a hundred years or more. Some speculate even a thousand years, on that information, we are not certain."**_

Being an Archsage and Alchemist, information of magical arts and spells, their components and other bits of ancient lore and history were more than their weight in gold. Yet he also understood keenly well the risks of many of the spells within the volumes of spells. The alleged "Abyss of Magic" was truly nearly endless in all its applications, but some spells were just not worth their costs . . . or their outcomes.

It also helped that Cecilia kept him from delving too deep into the mysteries surrounding ancient magic . . .

This was the most significant reasons why he had felt a distinct feeling of frustration with Todd's bringing in the elite guard to escort the gold to the Empire. He had sensed that mage with the Emperor analyzing them and had slipped a magic detection canceling ring on his finger, but the others did not have them. They only knew up to [ _Raise Dead_ ] for the healers and a few other Tier V spells, yet now that he thought about it specifically, he began to realize his own folly.

Looking back at Lucia, he dug in his heels.

"Lady Lucia, I understand your feelings on the matter and I do not disagree, yet we ourselves can be just as if not _more_ catastrophic to the people of this New World. Good intentions can be even worse than outright evil. Did you not swear to my liege that you would not take action against those of Ainz Ooal Gown? A conflict with them would no doubt bring untold destruction to the land. A land disconnected from the World Tree! Incapable of recovering from the clash of powers you and they could bring to the fight. Please do not act so rashly."

Lucia leered at the alchemist archmage. Todd knew that look. One of disappointment and contempt. Draconis had spoken in the past about how Lady Lucia had always been impulsive and honest to a fault, yet had extremely hard issues with rash actions when riled up.

"I told him that I would give them a chance and they've blown it. I would have thought that his direct subordinates would take up for an attack on their lord."

 _That_ comment made Todd bristle with fury and he did not back down from the Dragon Ascendant mentor of his liege. Glaring with arcane power in his eyes, he stood defiantly face to face with the woman, his eyes blazed mere inches from her own. He held an index finger up to her chest as he shook with his own anger.

"Then you do not truly understand our Sovereign!" he spat with his voice dangerous and low. "Down he may be now, and furious we may be, but we will not act unless he orders it full well knowing the possible effects his actions would have for those around him! The last thing we desire is to do something _he_ would regret us doing. For as his subordinates, our actions are by extension _his actions_. Thus by acting rashly and purely on emotion with no logic or reason reinforcing it, we are no better than _beasts_. So understand something Lady Lucia Ignis Thundercry of Phantasmagoria . . ."

Todd took a step back as he tried to control his emotions at the insult.

"Act on your own against Ainz Ooal Gown if you wish to. But we will not support you in doing so. Not unless our Lord Draconis orders us to do so. We are not suicidal to try to attack a force that repelled more than 1,000 entities as powerful as you and our liege, and were annihilated to a man. And the pillars of the Great Tomb of Nazarick never once actually fought any of them."

Lucia startled. _How did he?_

He smirked and drew forth a tome from his robe's inner pocket. Within lay a kind of hammer space. Magical and a relatively simple enchantment to create a storage space within the linings of his reinforced clothing. Upon the cover written in elaborate calligraphy were the words:

"Game Encyclopedia".

An object that he was in charge of at Draconis's own behest. A piece of forbidden knowledge that only he and Chronos possessed within The Lair. Lucia paled as she began to realize what this meant.

"Your expression is one of surprise. Do not be surprised, the tale of their one sided victory over such a raiding party is known to many. You believe that we have not have heard of the power of Ainz Ooal Gown? Information is power. Our liege lord and his wife Queen Pendragon distributed that news to all their subjects. Along with many other moments of history. We are not so blind and ignorant as you may believe us to be for Guardians that rarely leave our posts. Remember that well Lady Thundercry. Allies we may be at the moment, but it is by word of honor. Your actions are your own, do not make them ones that would damn yourself to losing our hand of friendship. If you would excuse me."

Todd whisked away in a gust of magical power. The Dragon Ascendant of Phantasmagoria was left stunned.

The [ _Game Encyclopedia_ ] was essentially the introduction tutorial of YGGDRASIL and something that every single player of the game received upon registering their character. It could keep tally on monsters, equipment, spells, unique skills and abilities. SO much more, but only if the player made the entries themselves. It was their personal Journal. It literally held limitless pages yet only weighed so much as a special "Artifact". She dared not think on what Draconis may have written within those countless, infinite pages . . . But if one of his NPCs possessed it and had read it . . .

 _They know . . . they know . . . but . . . if that truly is the case then WHY?! Why do they still do NOTHING?!_

Her mind could not comprehend why. She could only sink to her knees in confusion and denial. Was this the price she now paid for slumbering for more than 150 years? Only rising for little more than a day or two at a time? Four at most before going back to slumber? Her self imposed isolation even from the very NPCs of her own guild?

She could only ponder those thoughts as she remained alone, yet again . . . in a room not of her home.

* * *

 **Post Notes**

 **One more time . . . No, I have not quit this fic. But life, that old arch nemesis of us all has reared its head the past month and a half. I kind of knew some of it was going down in advance, some of the other stuff . . . not so much.**

 **Reviewer Responses**

 **Getting over thirty reviews for one single chapter, granted, a pivotal one for the fic's progression rather surprised me. Granted, several of them prompted my tirade in the pre-chapter Author's Notes.**

 **MANY of you all responded with theories . . . which I loved even as I kind of jaw dropped at the length of some of them. Lolz. I do enjoy in depth reviews though so don't feel bad.**

 **FEW of you just ranted and flamed . . .**

 **A SURPRISING number of you called out the fanatics and haters for what they were and offered encouragement or a critique. Thank you.**

 **Especially when the majority if not all of the hate reviews are from those with no fics of their own and of Guest accounts that render them immune to standard responses via the site. I have not deleted these though they can be at my discretion and even in spite of a surprising number of you telling me that I should delete them and move on.**

 **I have decided not to delete them and leave them for I know that there are those of you out there who read the reviews [** _Ironically enough . . ._ **] more closely than the chapter and the story.**

 **A good number of you all have a pretty good understanding of my writing style and mindset.**

 **Call out to:**

 _FanGuy59, NecroSerpent101, and Generation Zero_ **for their reviews. They are in tune with my fic though I have never been in touch with any of them in response other than the usual Reader Review Responses at the end of my chapters. Once again . . . Thank You!**

 **A number of you have left me reviews in good faith stating valid concerns and possible reasons for certain events and interactions. Reviews like those are both humbling and inspiring to see as it shows that they are not just READING, but COMPREHENDING and giving thought to the spirit, not just the words of the fic.**

 **Thank you.**

 **As an additional note, I will be a bit slower in updating over this summer period.**

 **Thank you in regards to your patience during this time. Once Summer is over with, my schedule will be back to allowing me more time during my free time to dedicate to writing.**

 **Now, onto the reviewer responses, even the bad ones.**

* * *

 **Vulcunniko:** Karma bites everyone equally . . . just gets lazy sometimes with its timing! XD

 **Wacko12:** Demiurge is proving to be a unique challenge to write any changes (if I even do change him) for. His inherent backstory makes it hard to change anything about him without triggering the haters. I.E. see the Ainz cult with what I've written thus far, or other authors with similar views as I do.

No, I'm not going to go on a "redeeming story arch" or some such with Demiurge. Ainz WILL remain evil, but get wizened up a bit if this chapter leaned him that direction a bit. His changes will not be instant as that just doesn't happen within reason. It's a work in progress.

 **UndeadLord22:** Get ready! Get Set! Buckle up man, 'cause here things go! Well . . . not exactly Draconis per se . . . buuuuut . . .

 **SasugaAinzSama:** You've been in touch with another author about my view on your review. I'm not blind to issues on both sides of a morality coin. If this offends your sensitive palate then you can stop reading. Doesn't stop me writing.

 **Rider126:** Will he get that Karma back? Good question!

 **Guest 1:** You want real disrespect? Those out there using certain online accounts to take money for their work that THEY DON'T OWN. That's plagiarism and copyright infringement and has a huge fine including jail time. Putting out shit to feed your own evil chuunibyou minds and LIVING OFF SOMEONE ELSE'S work. THAT is disrespect.

I take no donations, NO gifts other than reviews for those who enjoyed this fic. If I disagree with a few aspects of an otherwise, creative take on the usual Isekai trope, that's my take on it.

Hide behind anonymity and call me out when you may be one of the very ones PAYING for a person's living of off Kugane's work? Get of your box.

You keep reading it as well? Guess someone's a masochist.

If you have a good, supportive critique of my work and how to improve it or adjust the flaws in its execution, fine. I can respect it and give it thought, but you just want to flame and vent? Sod Off.

NEXT!

 **MadDan90:** You know the score and this is not the end. Sorry if this comes out . . . yet AGAIN, when you need to call it a night. Lolz.

 **NecroSerpent101:** Thank you for the review and you are correct on many points! YES, Draconis is quite the Overpowered individual. Yet that is part of his problem. Dragons in Dungeons and Dragons have few weaknesses. The Devs of YGGDRASIL canon, LOVE dragons. Lots of power, not so much weaknesses as they ARE the "Shitty Devs" by so much of the player base of YGGDRASIL that it was a normal term by the gamers.

YES, his Karma loss will drastically affect his powers, though not necessarily his RAW stats. His mentality also hampers him in a way. Yes, he DOES underestimate the New Worlders.

Your review is thoughtful and still voices the issues with Draconis but is respectful. Thank you. I am grateful for your continued reading and reviews. Hope to see you again in the reviews for this one!

 **Lew89:** Sorry so much for the very, VERY delayed installment! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

 **RagingCajun:** Okie dokie. Fair enough, though I hear PervySageChuck IS still around, just lurking somewhere . . .

 **AndrewWarholas:** Like Guest 1, get off your soapbox.

Original Character stories are no different than literally every writer ever existing in the world. A tale to push agendas, ideas, or concepts that fulfill a personal desire to express and be heard. Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Indiana Jones, Batman, Superman, Wolverine, Spiderman, Captain Jean Luc Picard, Solid Snake, Sephiroth, Sherlock Holmes and Moriarty, Agatha Christie's Pirouet, Garfield, Calvin and Hobbs, Harry freaking Potter!

SO SO many other characters known far and wide inspire or warn of things we can only imagine in our minds that anyone can place themselves to get away from it all.

Ainz protecting Nazarick?! Nazarick can protect its DAMN SELF. Did the Lizardman Arc have the lizard men attack Nazarick? NO. Did the Workers? Yes, BUT it was all engineered via Ainz through Mr. "I wanna see the Abyss of Magic an FUCK OFF to ANY moral standard to do it! Let them all burn! Lalala!" of the Empire. Protect the Great Tomb . . . shut the doors . . . done. Period. No one from the outside would be able to ever get in to attack them. 'Nuff said.

Your Number 5 point is ALMOST valid. Draconis indeed does NOT know the time and effort Momonga put in keeping the guild going while playing solo. But did Momonga REALLY grow in such a time? When it was still a game? We don't know that. So don't assume he did.

Your final "Point" is also completely bogus. Never have I mentioned that Rubedo was created by Draconis. EVER. I've even asked other readers to go back and find that point by re-reading my work. It's not there. So if you're going to make such a claim, QUOTE it for me.

Never mind that I released the previous chapter in May this year and you did not even have an Account on this site until June 13 this year. JUNE 13, 2019.

You made an account the day you posted this ignorant, butt hurt review JUST to post this sack of crock? I don't know whether to be impressed that I can offend someone so badly or what. Wow . . .

You hate OC stories? WHY ARE YOU READING THEM THEN?

Moving on.

 **Raizel Brunestud:** War! Yes, it IS building indeed.

 **FanGuy59:** I have to admit, when I say your review I was on my mobile device, so the text was like a Star Wars opening film crawl . . . lolz.

Yes YES! You pretty much nail it on the head with your review. Practically a summary of the chapter in a nutshell. Thank you.

And yes, as per your opening comment in the review. It is very much a clash of ideals and their executions between the two men.

Thanks for the review and I especially hope to see your appearance in the future chapters!

 **Cringe:** Do you haters even read bro? Did you miss the whole loss of experience and Karma? Do you not think that not all the facts and details are just handouts to you in the same sentence the event occurs in? Instant gratification should be a sin.

Honestly? I prefer some of the other Originals that are in The Exiled more than Draconis. Yet he too will have his own growth. I'm NOT going to do it in a single chapter though, that's just poor writing on a different note. If I was to write ANY character in its entirity in a single chapter and explain everything about him/her/it, then what's the point writing anything more on them? You would know everything already! Story done and over! Growth takes time, and in a book, that means many chapters, sometimes even many BOOKS.

Yes, the NPCs do act much like him. He created them. They're going to get biased. They are no different than the personal desires made reality by the "Supreme Beings" of Nazarick with their own NPCs. Acting how THEY MADE THEM.

Yeesh.

 **Guest 2:** Yes, I have read those side stories. Thanks! I had to put your review into a translator. Gracias!

 **Guest 3:** I don't know why they're still here either . . . Thanks for the review!

 **Semtex1397:** Then why do you waste your time? I am not forcing you to read it.

 **TheCrazyAnimeFan01:** Then keep on reading to find out. Thank you for the review.

 **DimensionDistorter:** One Billion? Jeebus I can't do that in my lifetime! XD

All joking aside, you and FanGuy59 left me veritable paragraphs! Lolz

I love world building. The "Crazy Stairs" idea came from old art classes I took long ago and looking through old pics of some wild artwork.

Yes, perhaps Draconis should have verified . . . but yes, his schedule did not really let him, nor did the timing. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

 **:** Well I hope to keep providing heartpumping moments.

 **EvilSod:** We've exchanged Private Messages about this.

 **Vic:** They're all over the place yeah? And not just in this LN/Anime/Manga, but others too.

 **Loke13:** Lolz. Thanks!

 **Jammin1227:** Thank you very much. You get it! Here is a cyber cookie!

Ah, MURDER HOBOS. Now THERE's a term I haven't heard in a while! Lolz. DnD tabletops jokes aside, it IS true that a lot of people tend to go that route when power gets put in their hands . . .

Thanks for the review!

 **Awayuki:** Percent chance? 50/50 really. I'm dead serious. Momonga doesn't know much of Draconis's build after level 80, but even though Draconis knows much of Momonga's build, he has know clue exactly what spells he will use in a fight. Momonga knows over 600. There is no way for Draconis to account for that many.

 **Overwarlord:** Hmmm . . . will he?

 **PandoraSoul:** Some of that is quite a long ways off, but keep reading and I'll do my best to satisfy!

 **A Commoner:** Here's the thing with Mary Sues. With as much ground has been covered with comics, manga, anime, video games, even real live acing on the silver screen, in books and novels . . . how the hells is ANYONE not perceived as a Mary Sue in some form or fashion?

Really, seriously. A Mary Sue is PERFECT. Flawless. Draconis is pretentious and even a bit arrogant. He's ignoring his WIFE. His subordinates put him in odd positions that make him have to think of the fly. A perfect person would have ALL of this covered. He isn't.

I can understand the hate for OC in fanfiction, but what I don't understand is if they hate it so much, why are they reading it? I'm not forcing them to. They make the conscious choice to click the button to open the chapter and scroll . . .

Your guess is as good as mine, and my guess is not that great . . .

 **Omegadramon2:** Keep on reading to find out!

 **Guest 4:** Yeah . . . sure . . .

 **Guest 5:** I can see how you come to that conclusion. Yet for the canon up until the past few chapters, Ainz/Momonga's story has not changed. Now that the changes are starting, you will all see more of AoG and others.

 **Cmnd Yammark Karsrkinstromtrooper:** Good Grief I had to copy and paste your epithet to my doc in order to type it without constantly swapping back and forth to respond to your review! O.O Lolz.

Thank you for your support! I do hope to see you again in the reviews of this story at some point.

 **Generation Zero:** You got a call out up above so now to the review!

Thanks for expressing your observations of the chapter. I feel that you and a few others do understand what I am attempting to convey in the characters.

 **Abiwolf360:** Whatever.

 **Varcisis:** I have not forgotten that he's no longer human, no less that Draconis is also no longer human. In fact, this worry over changes to themselves has been brought up a few times, though I DO admit to making hints rather than going deeply involved with the gritty details.

Hmmm . . . a spell suppressing the Emotion Inhibitor? Now THERE'S a novel idea!

Thank you for enjoying the story yet tactfully both voicing your concerns and also providing a possible idea to the reasons for certain happenings! You get a cookie!

 **Fan:** It's okay, this is not dead!

 **Zandaino-Nova-Ari:** Just be patient with me and you'll see. Hopefully this chapter provided at least a little scratch for that itch.

* * *

 **SHEESH! When the post notes and Reader Reviews take up SIX pages . . . phew! Done!**

 **Until next installment folks!**


	41. Chapter 38: War of the Dragon Kingdom 1

**Overlord: The Exiled**

* * *

 **Author Notes and Disclaimer**

 **I do not own Overlord. It is the property of Kugane Maruyama and is Licensed by YenPress.**

 **Another chapter that took longer to get finished than expected. Apologies.**

 **There is A LOT of ground for me to cover in the next few chapters before getting back to Artorias and the others. I know it's been a LOT of chapters since their last appearance, but I did kind of write myself into this long stint of Draconis's perspectives.**

 **To that end, the next few chapters are quite lengthy.**

 **Thanks again to all those keeping up with this fic!**

* * *

 **Chapter 38: War of the Dragon Kingdom Pt. I**

* * *

 **The Lair**

* * *

Samael leaned over the large meeting room table, his hands supporting his body as he glared at the offending pieces upon the massive map displayed magically. He did not possess his usual battle scythe with him. Having instead, entrusted it to Biggs and Wedge, the dwarven smiths whole heartedly agreeing to watch over his weapon. An attendant beside the table was eternally grateful for that gesture of sense.

It had been three days since their liege Draconis had been brought back, wounded and unconscious. Samael had been utterly enraged and had temporarily retreated back to his personal area of The Lair. The darkened [ _Vitriolic Swamp_ ] chambers leading up to the grand chambers of their lord. From that chamber anyone who dared approach could hear Samael roar and feel him rampage about in utter fury over the strike against their master.

Normally, Commander Samael was controlled and focused in his hot blooded nature. This offense however, was too much, and the gray haired Shadow Dragon [ _Blood Reaver_ ] class fighter had unleashed his pent up anger and rage. Fortunately, he had calmed just enough to retain enough sanity in spite of his fury to hand over his extraordinarily dangerous weapon to the dwarven master smiths for safekeeping . . . lest his anger get the better of him again.

God Tier [ _Fangs of the War Dragon_ ] was a vicious weapon in anyone's hands, but in Samael's it was a weapon of mass destruction and mayhem. A battle scythe capable of mowing down foes like wheat in a blood filled maelstrom of carnage. Draconis only unleashed Samael during the wars against Avalon that he came to their aide.

Biggs and Wedge had been honored to care for the weapon, but treated it with utmost care.

Chronos had also spoken with the Commander to help calm his nerves, but it only made the dragon of darkness boil and stew in his resentment.

He continued to stare at the magical displays until the soft footfalls of Hazuki approached the enormous table. More than twenty people could stand around the perimeter of the gargantuan piece of furniture with plenty of elbow room to spare. She opted to place herself on his left side, mere feet from him. She silently appraised her peer for a long while before shaking her head in frustration.

"Samael," She dropped all honorifics, grasping his attention at the rare form of address. "Glaring at the maps and reports will do nothing to soften the blow we feel against our Liege Lord. Chronos-sama has assured us that Lord Draconis is in no danger of dying, despite his weakened state."

Samael gripped a fist and gnashed his teeth, his voice did not try to hide his ire.

"Then why has Lord Draconis not awoken?! Damn that infernal undead!"

Hazuki frowned. Samael was her peer, yes, but he was also Draconis's first chosen Guardian. Samael himself was old. More than five hundred years at least. Only she and Luserina were close to his age. Yet, in dragon reckoning, he was just reaching full adulthood.

Even their human peers in Schwarzer Todd and Cecilia von Houten were more patient and even tempered than Samael was. Perhaps it was the dark nature of his dragon blood? A Shadow Dragon of such pure heritage was a powerful thing, but a bit risky. Draconis and Chronos's light aspects balanced out his darkness and they achieved a kind of parity, but with Draconis out of it, especially during such a turbulent time as this conflict with the Dragon Kingdom and the Beastmen Kingdoms . . . Samael was quite stressed.

"Calm yourself Samael." Schwarzer Todd entered the chamber with a tired, but patient tone in his voice. "I can feel your frustration and anger from down the halls in my study. While it is warranted, it is unnerving the staff."

Samael grunted and huffed a long sigh from his nostrils, breathing deep to try and calm his fraying nerves.

"My . . . my apologies Todd. I make no promises, but I will try to . . ." he growled in aggravation, "curb my anger."

Todd merely nodded quietly. It was not ideal, but he could handle it. Samael was not a man prone to promises and rarely made them. Getting him to admit to at least giving it effort would have to suffice for now. Dragons were notorious grudge holders. With their longevity added to the mix . . . you _really_ did not want to get on a dragon's shit list.

More evil ones tended to take out their grievances on _generations_ of offenders. With the poor sods reaping the ill gotten repercussions of offenses none of their descendants would ever realize unless explained to them. Todd made a mental note to actively curb the Shadow Dragon Commander's zeal for vengeance if he could.

Ever since this incident, Todd had been reading through the [ _Game Encyclopedia_ ] again. It was a literal lodestone of information and insight. Lesser scholars would make the item out to be something synonymous to the vaunted [ _Philosopher's Stone_ ] artifact, but it was not.

Right now though . . . they had other problems.

"There has been a disturbing _lack_ of sightings of Beastmen Raiders within the borders of the Dragon Kingdom these past three days. Other than the group Lucretia's forces defeated, we have seen little beyond retreating raiders. Yet, this is not a full withdrawal. I fear our presence has made their superiors begin to send in their _real_ terrors."

Samael nodded at Todd's words and the Archmage brought up a recording from their troops.

* * *

 **Two Days Before the Incident between Ainz and Draconis . . .**

* * *

Two squads of troops were executing a far out patrol near the eastern most fringes of the shrunken Dragon Kingdom borders and the Beastmen Kingdom border. With strict orders to not cross over into enemy homeland, they were guiding fleeing villagers back to the capital when they encountered a darkly outfitted group of beastmen.

These were swiftly recognized as an abnormal group. Their whole lot were superbly, if not disturbingly equipped. The leader of the small band was even more well outfitted. All of the armor was fur lined and would have been something akin to inspirational if not for the blood soaked fringes, the dried stains crusted the tips. A dull, red brown that carried with it the scent of death and decay.

They carried barbed daggers and pronged cross spears or war clubs studded with hard billets to inflict brutal impact. Of them all, the leader carried a wickedly curved blade like that of a saber but in reverse. Was it a khopesh? On his arm was a buckler covered in spines and spikes.

"You, take the civilians and keep pressing toward the capital. We'll bring up the rear."

The scout of the group nodded and continued to guide the citizens of the Dragon Kingdom away as the rest of the squads warily eyed the grimly adorned newcomers.

" **So you are the ones interfering with the Great Harvest . . ."** The helmed leader's voice was distorted through the helmet. **"We are the judges of our Magnificence. We are the Hunters of the Bloodmoon. Such insolence warrants the appropriate punishment . . . Kill them all."**

* * *

 **Hunters of the Bloodmoon**

 **Theme: Final Fantasy XV = Hunt or Be Hunted**

 **Play?**

* * *

The magic casters of the group both targeted the leader, hoping to severe the head of the snake and cripple their attackers before adding their firepower to their leaders. Both mages unleashed Tier V [ _Flame Javelin_ ], the six foot long, five inch wide hafts of arcane flames blazing like bonfires were hurled with all their might.

Only for both to be intercepted by the rising of earth and stone from the ground as one of the beastmen slammed his staff into the ground, the earth answering his call as the telltale runes of Tier Magic surged forth from the aether. The explosions were like infernos let loose from hell in the eyes of the retreating civilians.

The smoke and embers died out to reveal the wall of earth unscathed, only simple burn marks were the evidence of anything occurring to the defensive spell.

"Nothing?!"

"That's Tier VII [ _Gaia's Fortress_ ]! All soldiers stop holding back!" The Field Tactician bellowed as he brought forth a tome, its runes glowed in response to the pages being blown open. The others in their squads acknowledged his orders, knowing that this fight was likely no longer in their favor despite the numbers. The civilians could still be seen by the naked eye.

It was now a battle to hold the line long enough for the innocents to get away.

The five members of this beastman's team rushed the two squads of Draconis's forces. Furious fighting ensued, the leaders of both squads met their first couple of a assailants head-on. Shields blocked wicked shortswords and clubs as war cries echoed across the fields.

Elegant blades of knighthood sparked and clashed against the cross spear of their lanceman the two rogues of the party tried to corral the single Seeker of the beastmen. The man threw poison laced daggers at the healers only for them to be intercepted by the throwing darts of the two rogues. Dead set and determined not to let their healers come to harm.

Grudging nods of mutual respect passed between the beastman and the homonculus soldiers of The Lair. Throwing weapons were sorely underestimated things and to intercept one with another of one's own was no small feat. Even more so to know which one your partner was intercepting so that your dart did not negatively affect the act.

Both rogues knew that this one beastman had more than enough experience and skill to take on both of them two on one. The two dashed in from opposite sides, one high, the other low. Their daggers sought out tendons and joints meant to cripple and debilitate. Their target flourished his barbed daggers and spun about like an acrobat, his movements parrying and knocking aside their two pronged assault while attempting to tag them in return with his poisoned blades.

One of the soldiers took a foot to the face, spinning him about and into the dirt before he kicked up and away from the fight momentarily as his partner slid under a slash aiming at his neck. The man could feel the breeze off of the nasty edge. Leaping into the air, he positioned himself above the beastman, unleashing a cloud cone of throwing daggers from his hands with the use of [ _Death Blossom_ ].

The beastman contorted himself into odd angles and ends as he dashed about the ground, his body kept low as he parried what he could not dodge outright. The rogues of the squads recognized this as well with the subtle glow of his hands and feet and the aura around him body as he skidded to halt, completely unfazed and unharmed by the dagger rain.

[ _Uncanny Evasion_ ]. A skill they also had. If their Dexterity stats were high enough, they could avoid certain wide area attacks with minimal damage, but this one had gotten through it with NO damage at all.

They exchanged concerned frowns. This was [ _Improved Uncanny Evasion_ ] instead granting the user the ability to evade ALL damage from certain wide area attacks if his Dexterity was high enough. Even high level magic spells were not excluded from this powerful ability.

 _Such a beastman has that skill? We're in trouble._ The rogues both thought before whistling loudly and dashing back towards the beastman Seeker. Their opponent answered their unspoken challenge and dashed towards them as well. It was then that his eyes widened in surprise.

The two rogues ran one behind the other, positioning themselves opposite the sun, an act seemingly suicidal in a head on charge. Yet as they closed within reach, the second rogue following his partner . . . vanished! What was this?!

Fixing his gaze upon the one he could see, he thrust his poisoned dagger forward. Much to his surprise, the man took the dagger head on, letting it stab him in a raised arm. The man smashed bodily into him, wrapping his arms around his torso, locking him in place.

"You think this will stop me? ARHH!" He roared in pain as daggers shot up through his feet from the ground. Looking down, he saw the man's fellow rogue rise from the shadows. "So that's your trick, you hid in his shadow!" The two men lunged backward, the stabbed arm rapidly turning a sickly purple.

His friend forced a chomp into his partner's mouth and without warning, lopped off his comrade's arm above the poison. The man screamed through his gag before falling back to their healer.

"You believe you can get away . . . ? Guh!?" The beastman gaged, a sword shoved through his back and out his chest from one of the squad leaders.

Glancing over his shoulder, he saw that the swordsman's own partner was fending off both of their lancers, granted, he was bleeding profusely. His mind went back to the rogue's whistle.

"I see . . . A wordless . . . call for aide . . . well done." The beastman rogue slumped over, his life force expended. Yet he had cost them a literal arm and valuable help with the healer now being preoccupied.

Pulling the sword from his foe, the first squad leader turned in time to interject his shield from the warclub that hammered in on him from behind. The impact was enough to send him sliding across the ground several yards. Yards from his comrade. He grit his teeth as the lancemen overcame his freind's defense and skewered him through the chest with both spears, the gruesome act left a pair of 2 foot wide lines puncturing him all the way from chest to back. The man gasped wetly as he went limp in death.

Both beastmen did not bother retrieving their spears form the corpse; preferring to let go and draw kris like longswords from their sheaths as arrows from The Lair's archers shot through the air where they had just been.

"You go no farther to rejoin your fellows swordsman." The beastman before him grinded out of dry, cracked lips. His snake like tail whipped the ground repeatedly. "I will ensure that!"

The squad leader cursed and readied himself. They were being divided!

"Lancers! Kill the leader! GO!"

The two lancers leaped into the air and activated their weapon skills simultaneously. [ _Sky Piercer_ ] was a diving attack with the power to bypass defenses to a degree and inflict respectable damage. It was a fast skill and the angle of attack made it hard to properly defend against without dodging. As they activated their abilities, the leader of the Hunters of the Bloodmoon waved aside his magic casters.

" **Go. Help the swordsmen kill their archers. I have these two."** The mages departed and began to attack the archers in concert with their fellow hunters. The act making both lancers in the air curse. Their target already locked in, they could not adjust and go after the casters to help their allies.

They grit their teeth as they dove, bound and determined to finish or at least cripple this leader before dashing off to help their archers.

That would not come to fruition as they crashed down on the leader of this band of hunters.

" **Futile . . ."**

Buckler rose and glowed, bashing aside the left side diving lancer [ _Shield Swipe_ ] making a fool of [ _Sky Piercer_ ] by its nature as a blocking parry that could negate any one strike weaker than itself. As he did so, the leader of these beastmen sidestepped the second lancer, bringing up the khopesh in a dagger grip. [ _Assault Breaker_ ] . . . a move that their Lord Draconis was fond of making use of! The hooked end of the khopesh caught the haft of his spear and with a sharp yank, his spear met the dirt, followed almost immediately by the lancer himself. Whipping the blade around with the haft still caught, he whirled and grabbed the spear with his buckler hand and thrust upward, catching the still spinning partner in the back, impaling him facing skyward. His cry of pain silenced with the swinging of the khopesh, decapitating him cleanly.

All of this happening within an instant, the second lancer rolled bodily across the grass before managing to right himself, only to see his headless comrade upon his own weapon like a bloody banner. Unsheathing his shortsword, he cursed their luck. These were fighting on the level of skill and power as their Sanctum Guard!

"Not good!" His eyes widened as the bloody armored leader seemingly vanished . . . only to feel himself leave the ground and backwards . . . his bulged as he saw it . . . his lower half on the ground, yards away . . . "Wh . . . whaa . . .?"

His world went dark.

The remaining squad leader saw it though . . . the leader had dashed in so fast with a thrust that hit with so much force that his lancer's body separated from the hip, ripped in two by the force.

"[ _Hyper Sonic Thrust_ ]?! Lady Gareth's signature? Shit!"

The pair of archers darted to a fro, attempting to kept the two kris sword wielding beastmen from getting into melee reach, yet it was not easy. Their strides were so much longer than their own and they were naturally faster. Melee archery was a thing for some of their number, but it was a hard, and arduous regimen of training that they had not yet received.

Yet they fought a combat retreat, one falling back while the other distracted and engaged with what shots and evasion they could before receiving aide from the soldier falling back before retreating back and past their partner. One of the beastmen was utterly riddled with arrows, yet he still relentlessly pursued them.

The Field Tactician bit back a curse. These foes had [ _Fast Healing_ ] to a certain degree like several others in their forces. It also looked like their version of it was superior to The Lair's own members who possessed the trait by a fair margin. Not quite the same potency as Lord Draconis, but enough to make their arrows seem like ant bites rather than wounds.

"We'll take care of our seeker, go support them!"

The remaining hale, and hearty rogue looked to their Field Tactician and nodded before dashing off to assist their archers before they met the same fate as one of their squad leaders.

"[ _Triplet Maximize Magic: Chain Dragon Lightning_ ]!" The words made them all turn in time to see the mage dispel the earthen barrier and unleash the Tier VII spell known by practically all of YGGDRASIL for its flexible, destructive power. Instead of a single dragon of lightning, three of them let loose their cries of fury to the skies. Each dragon launched itself through the entirety of the two squads. The Field Tactician grit his teeth as the dragons approached him. Nothing in his arsenal would protect him from a spell this strong.

Hunkering in and crossing his arms in front of him, he cast several magical defensive buffs right before the spell smashed into him, growling in pain and determination as the magical lightning consumed him, he roared his defiance as his vision went white.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

White, his ears rang as he groggily lifted himself from the dirt. The smell of burnt ozone rankled his nostrils as he agonizingly lifted his face to look around him. He could see the healers, charred and cooked, their bodies smoked. The rogue who had sacrificed his arm was a husk on top of the one of their healers. A vain attempt to save his squadmate. Their surviving leader braced himself with his sword in the ground, glaring in defiance of the beastman laughing at him.

To his left, he heard their living archer cursing their opponents even as she was run through by both of the swordsmen of this . . . Hunters of the Bloodmoon. Her furious cries died as she lost her lifeforce, her anger dissolving into mumbling threats as she went silent. Oddly enough, they did not mock her, or toy with her. Merely killed her.

The leader of this band of beastmen approached the laughing beastman with the warclub, and smacked him across the back of the skull with a furious punch that made him hit the dirt face first.

 _What . . . ?_ The act confused the Field Tactician. What was going on?

" **These are not fools who fight without purpose and cause. These are true soldiers serving an entity like our Magnificence. Do not mock them. Kill them! Or be killed like our fool of a rogue!"** The leader swung his sword, decapitating the squad leader cleanly despite the wicked hook of the khopesh he wielded.

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see his fallen comrades's bodies beginning to dissolve into light. A sign that they were still close enough for their Lord's Fortress to project its magicks and revive them. They would remember these bastards . . . remember and emerge victorious. They would remember this pain, this defeat, and grow stronger!

Heavy footfalls brought his attention back to the front.

" **You all have some powerful magic in place over you."** He felt himself being picked up to be face to face with the leader of this band of hunters. The helm was like that of a wolf. The eyes glowed a dark red and death suffused his breath. The Field Tactician spoke nothing, but glared at the wolf like beastman. But could he be called such? The armor fully cloaked him like a cloud. His stature was too human like, his legs were not reverse jointed like wolves were. His voice, despite the distortion was too clear and precise.

" **Let your defeat mark the counterattack in defiance of your resistance to the Great Harvest . . ."**

The Field Tactician felt a sharp pain in his chest before his world went black . . .

" **Take his cloak with that Coat of Arms. We will show it to our Magnificence. Let the war truly begin."**

* * *

 **The Lair**

 **Strategy Room**

* * *

"So these Hunters of the Bloodmoon decimated two squads of our frontline troops?"

Samael frowned even as he drummed the table with his fingers. The rhythmic thud of fingertips upon the heavy hardwood was the only thing heard around the table. Schwarzer Todd and Hazuki both nodded as they too digested the battle recording from the memories of their frontline soldiers. Both of the squads had been under Todd's command and he had already checked up on them since their revival in the medical wings of The Lair. All of them burned from that defeat and their deaths had seen them more determined to strengthen themselves to fight again instead of them falling to despair.

They all had requested permission to train to become a part of the Sanctum Guard, or at least a part of the elite rank and file. Yet such training could take months . . . years even to attain such a jump in power and experience. Todd knew all too well the difference "Levels" could make in a fight regardless of skill.

"Yes, with relative ease might I add. It's not a good sign of things to come in this conflict."

It truly was not a good sign. Their average power was Level 30 as The Lair's PoPs forces. To be devastated with so few losses and so few blows was the sign of a large gap in power levels. Were they on the level of the Sanctum Guard at 50? Higher? That was something Hazuki and Samael both wished to confirm with their own hands, but knew that Draconis would never let them without careful consideration first. Their level of fighting prowess could permanently scar the landscape for years, decades possibly.

Looking over the map of the region, they all wondered just how much of this lush land would become a scorched desolate husk by the end of the conflict.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

* * *

Leinas Rockbruise furrowed her brow in concern at the sight of the two raven black haired young women that she had seen previously reporting to the Scarlet Swordsman. Gone were the previous displays of mischief and play. Now their eyes were nothing but business.

"We are behind schedule Lady Leinas. Let us be off." Akame spoke with an impatient edge to her voice.

Something about the urgency in her tone quelled any protest Leinas had felt to give voice to. The Imperial Knight nodded curtly and barked her orders to those assembled.

"Men! Forward!"

The Order of Knights of the Empire rode forward with Akame and Kurome leading them all out of the capital city on horseback. As they crossed through the gates and out into the distance, Emperor Jircniv sighed from his vantage point in the castle.

"Well Baziwood? What are the odds?" Jircniv questioned the Imperial Knight attending him.

"Of Leinas returning? I would hedge about half and half. If the Scarlet Swordsman does not cure that face of hers, then she'll be back. Back with news and information we can use in the future."

Jircniv bit a thumbnail before downing the remaining wine in his goblet. He could feel a headache coming on. Absently, he glanced in the direction of Fluder Paradyne's personal quarters. The Old Man had not come out of his chambers since the arrival of the gold tribute. Whatever was going through the Court Magician's head, Jircniv personally did not wish to know.

Within his sanctuary, Fluder Paradyne, the Triad Magic Caster, stared at the crystal ball before him in frustration and confusion. The precious medium for magical scrying was utterly blank.

"What madness is this?!" His voice was low and muttering, like that of a madman. "I can find nothing on that mage of his, much less the Scarlet Swordsman himself. Even the lavender haired lancer that had accompanied him to the audience with the young emperor cannot be scried! Do they all possess an artifact so powerful? Or could it be a singular artifact that is so powerful that it can affect them all at once?! Such a thing should not be possible!"

He muttered to himself faster and faster, his thoughts jumbling together at a fever pitch. This was driving him mad! It just had to be that dual hair colored mage . . . it HAD to be! Such overflowing magical power was beyond mortal means . . . The Abyss of Magic! Yet he did not appear a day older than his mid thirties at most! How did he acquire his powers?!

Even Rigrit . . . that infernal woman! Even she was as old as he was, though admittedly, her necromancy played a large part in why she did not appear as whithered as he was. Not that he really cared about appearances so long as he was able to plumb the depths of the arcane. She was the benchmark with which he measured his own worth and success. And now . . . NOW of all times! When he was so close to greatness beyond that of Rigrit with the Death Knight below the surface of the Empire's capital . . . that young caster with a magic aura so great as to eclipse everything he had come to know about the arcane world appeared. A man with such power who bowed to that Scarlet Swordsman! It made no sense. Magic was superior to any sword.

Then it dawned on him.

If not the Scarlet Swordsman, his mage, or that lancer . . . then his homeland! If he could not see anything about the man, then surely his homeland could be investigated. Refocusing his efforts, on the [ _Scrying Crystal_ ], Fluder Paradyne conjured up the name of the nation that the Scarlet Swordsman claimed to be his home.

Avalon.

The crystalline sphere brightened, then the light gave way . . .

"Hmm? What is this?"

Now he was genuinely confused. What was he looking at? There was a massive field of clouds off of a shoreline. Where was this? Was this fog? If so, then it was thicker than anything he had witness before his his life.

* * *

 **Same Time**

 **Avalon (Around Two Weeks before Leviathan Oceanis)**

* * *

Artorias and Gareth glanced out of the window of their meeting room in confusion. Where had this fog come from?

"Beaumains? Do we have some kind of defense I am somehow unaware of? This fog cannot be natural. It feels magical in nature, but I've not ordered anyone to put up this natural shielding."

The Lady Knight of the Round shook her head negatively.

"No My Queen, I am not familiar with any of this. It will affect our fliers though. Should we rally the guard?"

A figure landed just outside the window on the sill. Said individual bowed their head in respect from her crouch before speaking.

"Your Majesty! Lady Gareth! Lord Mordred has mobilized the Howling Wind agents along with Ser Agravain's spy network. We have been assigned the duty of monitoring all our borders with the appearance of this sudden fog."

Both women smiled at the news before nodding as dismissing the messenger. Mordred was very good at adjusting to things of the fly. He was probably working alongside Lancelot. Both of the knights had volunteered to take on a few extra shifts to let the two of them relax a bit from their duties. Artorias sighed as she sank back into her chair. Evalyn poured them more tea, one of the few commodities that they could afford to splurge a bit on compared to other food necessities. All of that paperwork was more daunting than going to battle!

Meanwhile, down below in the Royal Treasury, Mordred and Lancelot were both meeting with the daughter of the First Sire, Ratotosker.

"So, you felt Divining magic searching out our shared home and called forth this fog to prevent any spying?" Lancelot asked the colossal she dragon curiously. As a one of the First Brood, her magical powers were fearsome.

"I did indeed World Champion. Someone may be searching for information. They have probably encountered my Father's Emissary."

The Knights of the Round glanced at each other and shook their heads. Looks like Draconis was letting a bit of information go. At least they had countermeasures in place to prevent such long range spying attempts. Yet even then, having Ratotosker with them was a massive boon. Especially when she did not need to reveal herself to do anything to help them. The dragoness laughed mirthfully at their reactions.

* * *

 **Baharuth Empire**

 **Same Time**

* * *

Fluder Paradyne growled in ever growing annoyance. Blast the rules of magical scrying!

A fundamental law of the Divining spell [ _Scry_ ] was that it could not pierce the veil of natural phenomena, even those brought about by magic. [ _Scry_ ] viewed the target from a set range dependent on the nature of the object, person, or thing being spied upon. If it was inside a box, you would see the box it was housed in, not the object itself, though technically you would be, but not directly. So for Avalon, the fog shrouded it like a shield. It would be no different if it was surrounded in a vortex of fire. All Fluder would have seen would have been raging flames.

This was not normally a great obstacle in the New World as there were not many things, much less people, with enough magical power to fully shield them against the magical spying spell. But he was not aware of the ludicrous information wars that the Players of YGGDRASIL had waged against each other for more than ten years . . . and how much paranoia and secrecy were valued in that time.

As such, he would never truly realize just how lucky he was that Ratotosker had merely affected the weather with her magic rather than letting Avalon's magical latticework of defensive spells erected by Archsage Merlin with the cooperation of Knight of the Round Agravain and Percival. The two high security workers in their home of Earth with a sadistic streak of fortress defense mindsets. The counterspells they erected about the guild base would seek out spies using magic and give nasty surprises that could ruin another Player's day.

And so it was in this odd fashion that the First Sire's daughter unwittingly saved the Triad Magic Caster from extraordinary embarrassment and possible death.

Fluder Paradyne's mind began to become unhinged in the frustration and desperation he was now feeling.

He lunged at the last option. The one that both that lavender haired lancer and the Scarlet Swordsman had both outright warned against.

Ainz Ooal Gown . . .

* * *

 **Dragon Kingdom**

 **Capital Encampment**

* * *

Luserina nervously wrung her hands together in unease as she spoke with Cecilia.

"Lady Cecilia, are we certain that we should not contact Her Majesty Artorias about Lord Draconis?"

Cecilia von Houten looked up from her map of the areas east of the capital of the Kingdom. Luserina did not call her name with any sort of formality unless she was very nervous and unsure of herself. Which was a rarity. But when it did happen . . . well, the elf woman became more like a teenager unsure of what her actions could lead to.

Setting aside her quill and drying her notations with a small gust of magical air, the emerald green haired noblewoman sighed lightly. Her peer and friend in Luserina had never look so nervous before.

"Luserina. Chronos and our finest healers are working on the problem. True, he is bedridden, and has been for the past three days, but this predicament is not exactly new to us."

Cecilia took up a cup of tea and sipped.

"Our Lord has been in our wards for treatments against wounds and injuries before. I will admit that circumstances of this most recent bout of medical attentions is what is truly off putting and outrageous. I have little doubt that Chronos will be able to help our Lord pull through as he has in the past."

Luserina did not feel terribly reassured of that.

* * *

 **Somewhere . . .**

* * *

 _Where . . . am I?_

Draconis opened his eyes and winced as his eyes adjusted to a swirling mass of whites and blues on a canvas of night black. Slowly sitting up, he blinked painfully as he observed his surroundings. As the swirling colors faded, he began to make out the towering crags of earth around him on all sides. The center that he began to pick himself up from was a smooth, circular section of worked stone, polished like glass.

"Where is this? The last thing I remember is . . . Momonga blasting me with that spell of his." He grit his teeth. "Damn. That could have gone better. What did he hit me with though? Is this a side effect of his spell? Did our transfer affect it?"

Taking more time to glance about and carefully made a more detailed sweep of the area. He did not feel weightless, it felt like he was standing upon a platform of glass, or transparent stonework. The air around him was suffused with magic.

 **MINE DESIRE TO CARRY ON DISCORD BETWEEN US HAST BEEN AWAITING A MOMENT TO SPEAK WITH THEE IN EARNEST MINE EMISSARY. THY WILLPOWER IS CERTAINLY IMPRESSIVE FOR ME TO RESORT TO FORCING THEE INTO UNCONSCIOUSNESS WITH THY CRIPPLED STATE TO SPEAK DIRECTLY WITH THEE.**

Draconis spun on his heel and immediately backed several steps away as the uber colossal form of the First Sire, Midgardsormer materialized like a phantom from the aether no more than a few meters from him. His form long and serpentine, almost like that of a Quetzalcoutl. Draconis could only behold the upper portion leading to the Progenitor Wyrm's massive head that gazed upon him with glowing golden crimson eyes. Long, thirty meter whiskers from his snout, four on each side swayed with each subtle movement. Massive wings unfurled for a moment, larger than football fields, Draconis could not tell how large for they engulfed all his view as they wrapped around his spot, encasing him on all sides.

The ancient, primordial dragon sire of all dragon kind lowered his massive head to better view his chosen. Draconis grit his teeth so hard they hurt and bowed his head with his eyes shut. He could feel the warnings in his mind.

[ _World Dragon Midgardsomer_ ] _Threat Level: World Ending Raid Boss. Extraplanar Outsider._

His class: [ _Emissary of The World Dragon_ ] told him more information and Draconis swallowed.

' _If he wants to, I am dead. Period.'_

 **Midgardsomer: World Dragon, World Raid Boss**

 **Type: Progenitor Dragon, Divine Entity**

 **Level: 250**

 **Threat Level: World Ending**

 **PATIENT HAST THIS ONE BEEN TO SPEAK WITH THEE IN FULL. NOW. WITHIN THIS AETHERIC FLOW SHALL WE DIALOGUE.**

"Very well Primogenitor." Draconis spoke respectfully. "I gather you have the need to discuss our . . . pact?"

 **INDEED YOUNG EMISSARY. MUCH PROMISE HAST THOU. YET THY SQUANDER IT UPON THESE MOTES UPON THE STAR WHICH THOU HAST FOUND THYSELF. THY MINDSET TIS ONE OF A MERE HUMAN WITHIN THE SHELL OF MY PROGENY. THOU ART NOW ONE OF THE BROOD IN ALL BUT SOUL.**

"I am aware of my situation Lord Midgardsomer, but this was not of my choosing, nor was it for my wife and our friends. I am trying to do right by a people plagued by savagery. But to simply sweep in and become their salvation by my own hand with nothing to help them stand upon their own feet and deeds is not a boon, it is a crutch."

Draconis spoke in earnest, steeling himself all the while as he looked up at his ancient patron.

 **INDEED IT CAN BE AS SUCH EMISSARY. YET THOU HAST NOT SEEN THE HORRORS THY KITH AND KIN HAVE SUFFERED BEFORE THINE ARRIVAL ON THIS STAR.**

Without warning countless images and events flooded Draconis's mind and he fell to his knees in agony. He was positive that he was screaming as they viciously assaulted his mind. His emotions swelled in both shock, horror, despair, and outrage as each event played out before him in hyper compressed time.

Dragon Lords . . . true and powerful, brought low in a bloody, brutal war against eight individuals he recognized from bits of their gear as Players of YGGDRASIL. The conversations he had with Draudillon told him . . . these must be the Eight Greed Kings. Truly living up to their epithets gifted by the New World natives, they ravaged the lands without heed. Slaughtered dragon kind for their body parts and other things considered treasures. Age and gender did not matter, wyrmling and great wyrm died both in the same manner. Cold and ruthless, uncaring . . .

Monster farming . . .

. . . but there was no revival like in the game they had played . . .

Dragons had long gestation times and even though the females laid clutches, not all of them made it to hatching. Dragons were fickle creatures akin to felines and other whimsical beings. Capable of malignancy and benevolence in equal measure. Older dragon kind were exceedingly strong, but younglings were surprisingly delicate until their scales could harden with age to that of magical armor. The same was true of their fangs, claws, and their most notable, their dragon's breath. Youngling dragon breath was honestly laughable until their adult years, which was several hundred years off from hatching. Their magic capabilities were likewise slower to grow. Simple spells were accessible to them a few scant months after hatching, but none of it was truly noteworthy until young adulthood, somewhere between their first and second century.

Clutches of eggs in his vision burned or were shattered, killing the younglings within. The sight made Draconis drop to all fours and his fingernails grew to actual claws as he dug several throughs in the surface of whatever it was supporting him. Or at least they tried to.

The visions continued as he saw them killed several times over, but due to the magics and powers they had at their Guild Homebase, they kept coming back, killing their killers and harvesting them without regard.

But this was not YGGDRASIL.

Thus did Dragon Kind, once mighty and the pinnacle of the New World's lands . . . become an endangered species on this chunk of the world.

Yet all throughout this, other races also were caught up in the violence and it was during their rampaging time, that humanity received the chance to breath and survive. Or rather, they were given the skills to help the Eight Greed Kings hunt dragons and other non humans. Either by tipping them off to the Players, which happened more often than human kind fighting off their non human neighbors.

It was like the Dragonsong War, but lead by just eight Players from a game. Not an Orthodox Church lead nation of fanatics deceiving their people in a war that they had actually started via betrayal of the pact between dragon kind and humans. But by just eight people wanting to claim the world.

Eight people whose slaughter and greed consumed them from within for the only female among their number.

Draconis did not know when he stopped screaming, much less when he had lost his voice from the screaming. He was breathing raggedly, his body soaked in sweat and his arms felt like jelly from the clawing he had done to the floor. His fingertips bleed from claws failing to rip apart the magical floor under him. His regeneration had been the only thing keeping them from popping off his fingertips.

With labored breathing and hoarse throat, Draconis ground out his words.

"So you would ignore the potential of those that had supported dragon kind?"

 **THOSE THAT DID WERE NOT OF THIS STAR EMISSARY. THOSE OF THIS STAR HAVE NOT EARNED IT.** Midgardsomer did not make mention of the Argland Council States. **WHAT YOU HAVE JUST FELT IS THE UNENDING ANGER . . . THE INDIGNATION . . . THE _FURY . . ._ OF ALL OUR KIND AT THEIR ARRIVAL AND THEIR SLAUGHTER.**

He did not need to, for he could feel the indignation with his chosen. Such a stubborn young one. The First Sire could feel the dark, smoldering fury beneath the tightly controlled veil of civility. He could taste the darkness within the young man's history. Certainly, he was considered approaching the height of his prime as a human of his mid thirties, but that was no longer the case. A hundred years was like a day to dragon kind. But another drop in time's bucket.

 **WHILE SOME OF MY PROGENY HATH MADE COVENANTS WITH THE MOTES OF THIS STAR, THEY ARE BUT PIECES UPON THEIR BOARD, WATCHFUL OF MORE LIKE THY BELOVED MATE AND THEE. AFTER THE TRIBULATIONS OF THAT PERIOD IN HISTORY, THEY SHALL NEVER FORGET AND THEY SHALL NOT ABIDE MORE OF THY PEERAGE LEST THEY USHER THOSE OF THIS STAR TO OBLIVION'S GATES.**

Draconis's regenerative powers healed his fingertips and the pain in them became a dull throb and eventually, nothing at all. His throat also healed from the harsh screaming he had been doing as well. As he calmed himself, he could feel it within him, the curse that plagued his essence, his soul. He was weaker now, and as such, more susceptible to Midgardsomer's abilities than normal.

"Surely they can be lead in the right direction First Sire! If dragon kind have left legacies like Draudillon, even as a whim, and she cares for her people . . . then certainly even you must acknowledge that they have _some_ chance! That the denizens of this star DO have a chance of redemption! Of being ushered into a brighter age instead of one of dark despair!"

Midgardsomer let loose an ear splitting roar of indignation that rattled Draconis down to his soul, forcing the man to his knees again.

 **ENOUGH EMISSARY! I DID NOT CHOOSE THEE TO BE AN INTERCESSOR AND ARBITER OF DRAGON KIND TO MAKE CASE AND BARGAIN FOR THE MOTES OF THE LAND. THY PLACE IS OF DRAGON KIND, BETWEEN DRAGON KIND AND FOR MY PROGENY, NOW MADE _THY_ KITH AND KIN. I DOST SEE THE POTENTIAL THOU DOST POSSESS IN ABUNDANCE, FOR THAT I SHALL NOT HARM THY PERSON.**

Draconis felt something pierce his being and he choked like the wind had been knocked from his lungs. Doubling over, he coughed raggedly. The anger, his indignation at the wrongs inflicted upon the Dragon Lords of that time and of the draconic race as a whole redoubled in power. Tripled even! When he thought of Draudillon and the wrongs inflicted upon her people, her blood as a descendant of a Dragon Lord stirred his wrathful fury as they were considered by her as her responsibility, her clutch of mortals. Hers, and hers alone, yet she was a youngling compared to true Dragon Lords, much less the First Brood and even Draconis himself given the in-game history and stories made real by the Transition.

This invasion on her people he now felt not only as a savage assault, but as a declaration of superiority over what was a dragon's personal lair and domain. Superiority over the abilities of a dragon blooded ruler. It was a personal insult now, even as his mind logically railed against it, his soul now grew cross and heated with anger.

Truly . . . like a dragon.

"Agh . . . ugg. Grrr. . . ." Draconis flinched at his growl that had become deeper, more . . . inhuman. "What did you?"

Midgardsomer's tone was like that of a smirk. Humored by his own little inside joke.

 **DOTH THOU BELIEVE ME AN OATHBREAKER NOW? I HAVE NOT HARMED THEE. ONLY MADE TO BREAK THE BARRIERS BETWEEN THY OLD MIND AND THE NEW. THOU THOUGHT TOO OFT AS A HUMAN MOTE. NOW THOU SHALT BEHAVE AS THY SHOULD. DRAGON, A CHILD OF MINE OWN . . . AS A DRAGON SHOULD. FOR A HUMAN MIND IS NOT MADE TO WITHSTAND AGES OF LIFE. INHIBIT THYSELF AS THEY WISH, BUT KNOW FULL WELL THAT THOU ART DRAGON KIND. ETERNAL. EVERLASTING.**

Draconis glared at his patron with wide, shocked eyes as the great, Primogenitor of all dragon kind faded from view, his vision going white in the process.

"What?! Wait! Grrraa **ooarrRRRR!"**

* * *

 **The Lair**

 **Medical Wards**

* * *

Stella was at her station analyzing the vitals of their lord Draconis when she grew alarmed at the sudden, instant increase in his magical fluctuations. Yet before she could do a single thing about it, he shot up from the table.

" **RRRAAAAAOOOOORRR!"** His outcry was ear splitting in magnitude and she was forced to cover her ears since they were so sensitive without her eyesight. The instruments were all attuned magically, so she could make use of them without vision being necessary, but now her sensitivity was a burden. The walls shook and vibrated with his rancor.

In spite of the terror she felt overcoming her senses, she yelled out, hoping to both get the attention of those outside – not that they would have failed to notice their lord roaring so furiously – and try to calm their lord.

"My Lord Draconis, it's okay, it's me Stella! Chronos's assistant! Please calm yourself!"

Draconis roared once more before his eyes began to refocus and he grit his teeth, his fangs tore his lips and he bleed as he rolled to the side, falling off of the edge of the bed they had placed him upon. Ignoring the angel medic that tried to come to his aide, he put his forehead to the floor as he remained on all fours. His left hand gripping his right forearm so hard, his claws drew blood that he let flow. Fighting to bring his emotions and fury under control, his breathing turned haggard and he struggled to draw in large enough breaths of air to help calm his heart.

The lack of a need for the basic necessities of food, sleep, drink, and even air as a [ _Dragon Ascendant_ ] was actually making it very difficult to fully utilize the desire to breath for calming purposes. Chronos entered, genuinely shocked at seeing his liege on the floor. Yet as he approached to assist Stella, the dragon's words gave him pause.

"Damn it all. Becoming the opposite with my emotions and soul ignited at so much as a scoff at dragon kind?! Damn you First Sire! Forget my fury and indignation, what of my other emotions?"

Chronos slowly made his way to Stella and took her by the shoulders. Opening [ _Message_ ], his tone was strict and all business. _Stella, leave us. I shall tend to Lord Draconis. Something has happened and I will speak with him about it._

 _Lord Chronos?! Are you certain?_

Draconis began to repeatedly thud his head against the floor in a combination of annoyance and self chiding, his blood from his arm began to slowly pool on the floor. The grip of his hand not relenting as he struggled.

 _I am Stella. Go. Personally fetch Samael, Cecilia, and the other Guardians. I will be here with our lord._

She stood and bowed to him before darting out of the room. The doors slid shut softly.

"Is she gone Chronos?"

"Yes Lord Draconis."

The red haired knight rose and leaned back on his knees and stared at the ceiling. His blood ignited and burned its bright azure blue flames, scorching the floor in a contained burn as his arm was engulfed in fire as it slowly healed, the deep gouges he had torn into his own flesh mended slower than they would have normally in response to his desire to feel the pain a bit longer. Wisps of fire licked his lip as it too healed from his fangs's cuts.

"Thank you for dismissing her without making her feel useless. I fear my blood's penchant for igniting would have only sent her into more panic."

Chronos nodded, but his liege's words still rang in his ears. What did he mean by the First Sire tampering with Lord Draconis's emotions?

"Lord Draconis, in light of recent events I feel it a necessity to ask. What happened? Your vitality has dropped significantly and I can feel a change within you."

The [ _Dragon's Tears_ ] died out and he sighed as he stood slowly before taking a seat on the edge of the bed he had fallen out of. Scratching the back of his head, he silently wondered where to begin. So much had happened so quickly it was hard to tell how much of it all had contributed to this situation.

"I will tell you in a moment. Let me collect my thoughts a bit."

Chronos nodded and quietly stood by like an attendant. It was like this previous times he had found himself raised back or seriously injured during certain periods of YGGDRASIL's lifespan. He would have Chronos act like something of a debrief as part of his duties in his background were to observe Draconis in battle from his place in The Lair and studiously take notes of the powers, strategies, cheap shots, and other bits of info from any PvP encounters he had. The information he garnered would be laid out before him before Draconis departed to regain his strength via leveling, or taking another crack at a particularly tough monster and/or dungeon.

It was the reason he had called Chronos off during his match with Go Gin. The Seraphim Empyrean had been watching the match and had been infuriated at his getting impaled on a pillar. Even if the damage was "lethal" to most others.

 _It looks like the concepts of Hit Points, and other attributes are still in full effect for us from YGGDRASIL. Usually fatal strikes deal Critical Hits, but if they are not high enough in power to actually deal damage . . . to others of this New World, we seem invulnerable to a ludicrous degree. While I would assume decapitation would still kill us, most other normally fatal strikes will not unless certain circumstances are fulfilled._

"After our incident with Momonga of Ainz Ooal Gown, the First Sire met with me in what I could only describe as my mindscape."

Chronos was not unfamiliar with the idea of being drawn into another plane or realm to have communion with higher beings. As the highest order of angel, it was something he was quite aware of. Yet to meet with the Primogenitor of all Dragon Kind could not have been pleasant.

"I see. What did the First Sire have to say?"

"That I was not acting as a dragon should." Draconis huffed in self depreciating amusement. "As such, he has made my emotions fiercer when it comes to anything related to dragon kind. Regardless of whether or not it is a positive or negative feeling, it has intensified. I fear my empathy towards other races may have plummeted a bit."

This was something Chronos had not been expecting. So now it was more personal for his liege lord.

"Would that include us as well my Lord?"

Draconis's eyes grew a bit distant in thought as he lifted a hand to his chin. His other hand supported his elbow as he became introspective. The Knight Most Heavenly of Avalon scratched his chin a bit before answering.

"I do not believe that to be the case Chronos. You all are under the umbrella of protection in my personal home, my sanctuary. As such, you are . . ." his face soured considerably as he spoke his next words, "possessions so to speak. Dragon kind has ever been possessive and those they consider under their protection and purview are most precious to them. That has not changed, but I do not consider any of you possessions like an object. Those are the treasures in their place in The Lair's actual strong chambers."

Chronos let a relieved sigh leave his lips as he held a hand over his heart. Seeing Draconis's expression as he spoke told him that despite whatever change that the First Sire had wrought upon his liege, it only went so far. Granted, it could very possibly grow more prominent with time. Something to file away for later, but for now he would take what he could get. Still, the others would be made to know this as soon as they could.

"I see. While I am relieved to hear you say such things my Lord, I do insist you still rest for a time before venturing back out again. There have been developments in our aide to the Dragon Kingdom."

Draconis's eyes narrowed dangerously. "What _kind_ of developments? I know we have all been busy carrying out various duties, but why was I not informed sooner?"

Chronos swallowed nervously at the dangerous glint in the dragon's eyes. It seemed like Midgardsomer did a bit more than he had let on to his liege. This would be most unpleasant, even though he was quite confident that Draconis would not harm any of them for it. There could be quite a tongue lashing after the fact.

Before he could answer, the doors opened to reveal all the other Guardians. Each of them with various expressions of concern or worry.

"My Lord!" "Lord Draconis!" "My Liege!" **Squeek!** "Thank the gods."

Were the cries as they rushed up to their leader. Draconis was taken back a bit by their insistence and relief that he could feel. Sighing heavily, he quietly nodded to each of them even as Cecilia von Houten came up to him and pressed a hand to his forehead, making him frown as The Bunny bounced into his lap and looked up at him with its red eyes bright.

Luserina knelt on one knee as she sidled up to his feet like a concerned daughter. The men took up spots on either side of the dragon knight as Hazuki folded her arms over her chest and huffed.

"You were careless Lord Draconis. The Overlord should have no place surprising you as he did. Now you are shackled by whatever curse he has placed over you!"

Draconis turned a rather withering glare at the kitsune sword saint, making her wilt a bit under blazing eyes of swirling colors.

"You would do well not to speak that way again Hazuki!" His tone was clipped and short fused. "You do not give Momonga enough credit. As inept his social graces may be, he _is_ the leader of Ainz Ooal Gown and shrewd when he wishes to be. While it is true that there are many who were stronger or more cunning that him, he is still far above the normal. The Necromancy he wields as an Overlord classified undead is only a part of him."

Hazuki, realizing how her words had been taken . . . as both a veiled insult of her very liege and a frighteningly arrogant statement of superiority of a being that had crippled her liege despite his powers . . . dropped to her knees and planted her face into the floor as a gesture of extreme repentance.

"Forgive me! I was out of line!"

Draconis growled lowly and all the Guardians tensed up. The Bunny shivered and shuddered on his lap as Luserina almost curled in on herself in a nervous wreck. Samael recognized the traits of a dragon in full spiteful fury. Yet this was unusual of Draconis and so he looked to Chronos, who swiftly spoke up in Hazuki's defense.

"Lord Draconis! It may be a lapse of judgment from her, but Hazuki speaks out of concern for you. Remember what the First Sire has done to you."

Draconis flinched before blinking hard for a few seconds, the oppressive aura he was exuded died off slowly as his wits returned to him. Shaking his head briefly to clear his mind, he clicked his tongue in aggravation as the raging emotions – now enhanced by the First Sire's meddling – ebbed away to reason.

"Damn! Thank you Chronos . . . Hazuki!" He spoke firmly, but lost the anger in his tone. Hazuki nodded, her face still in the floor. "All of you . . . Listen closely to what I have to say."

The group nodded and gave him their undivided attention as he began to go over what had transpired in his time unconscious.

* * *

 **Meanwhile**

* * *

Draudillon drummed the surface of her desk. The steady sounds echoed her frustration as Lord Karlyle ranted in front of her while he paced back and forth. His huffing and puffing only serving to drive the annoyance needle further into her skull. To the side, Baron Whitepeak shook his head in quiet apology to his queen. The dragon blooded ruler had already snapped one of her favorite quills in two due to the slightly pudgy nobleman's ramblings.

Scattered about her desk were reports from Whitepeak's barony and other nobles who yet retained their lands and other holdings with the guidance and firm protection of Draconis's military might. This was the quietest she had heard from all her people since before the initial raids from the Beastmen Kingdoms years ago. Part of her was certainly elated to hear such wonderful news for once, yet her mind was also concerned about the rumored sighting of Beastmen War Generals. Right now Lord Karlyle's rantings were the last thing she needed to hear.

A significant potion of her heart worried about the mystery situation that had called Samael away to Draconis's side.

 _What could call for such urgency of Commander Samael by Ser Draconis? Nothing good I would wager._ Her thoughts were cut off by the pontificating Karlyle calling her name.

"I _must_ emphasize Queen Draudillon, that these people that he deploys are not natural! It is some kind of sorcery! A forbidden magic if I must – and I DO – insist! Are we truly to believe that they are really benign?!"

Having heard enough and seeing Baron Whitepeak from the corner of her eye silently pleading with her to make the man stop his prattle, she sighed through her nose. Pinching the bridge of her nose after sighing, she huffed very unladylike. Her patience was fraying.

"Lord Karlyle. We have been over this several times now. Ser Draconis has been a great boon to us as a nation and to our tired, beleaguered people. I understand all too well from my _decades_ of rule," she stressed her time on the throne heavily, "the risks. But it is either this . . ."

Her voice darkened as she called upon her blood's power. Her eyes darkened before glowing a honey amber gold that made both men flinch.

" . . . or I call upon my magic."

It was a display that made each of them back away a step as things on her desk began orbiting the room centered on her. The air became oppressive and heavy, her incisors grew a full inch and her fingernails elongated to sharpened points like claws.

A loud knocking from the doors prompted Draudillon to ease her magic and return everything picked up to return to its rightful places.

"Enter!"

A messenger of their rallying, rebuilding forces stepped in and bowed hurriedly before speaking to his ruler.

"Your Majesty! A force of soldiers have crested to the horizon to the north. They bear the banner of the Baharuth Empire and are guided by two of Lord Brightblade's swordswomen."

Karlyle gawked and Draudillon smiled lightly at his reaction to the messenger's news.

"How many?" The man spoke in disbelief. "They could not have convinced the Bloody Emperor to part with more than a token force."

"The lookouts count a whole order of their knights. There are at least twenty thousand strong lead by Imperial Knight Leinas Rockbruise herself!"

 _That_ drew everyone's surprise.

Lord Karlyle's jaw hung open like a gate left unattended and Baron Whitepeak smirked even with his own surprise at the nobleman's shock. Granted, he was equally taken off guard by that report, yet somehow, he knew something extraordinary would have come from Lord Brightblade setting out personally to attend to rallying reinforcements.

Rising from her seat, Draudillon walked to her window and pushed open the shutters. Glancing down, she could see them coming around to the main gates of the city in the distance. The banners were indeed of one of the orders of knights from the Empire. Lady Akame and Lady Kurome both lead the massive order of knights from the front with what looked to be Leinas Rockbruise just behind the two riders. From the crowds below watching the spectacle, the reactions were a mixed collection. A larger portion of the people cheered at additional help arriving from their northern neighbors. Yet a fair share of those watching gave them silent glares of contempt or disappointment.

It was not a great secret that the Baharuth Empire and Slane Theocracy had not been the greatest of neighbors went it came down to providing assistance, much less relief. For other than the Bloody Emperor's purges of the nobility and bandits here and there, the only true conflict that the Empire faced with any form of regularity was their annual battle with Re-Estize.

Yet that was a conflict in which they did not even normally deploy even half of their overall military capabilities against conscripts and farmers, much less any real standing army. It was a topic of hot contention among the Dragon Kingdom's populous.

At least those of the Slane Theocracy were actually engaged with an ongoing war with the Elf Kingdom to the west. As such, the people of the Dragon Kingdom were more understanding of the Theocracy not sending more significant aide.

Yet Draconis had done it. He had secured reinforcement from the Empire. Part of her was concerned about the costs to acquire it though. Especially since Samael had been summoned a few days ago and she had not heard from him or his liege lord since. Hopefully, the cost of securing reinforcement was unrelated to the reason for whatever had made Draconis to summon Samael to his side.

Shaking off that feeling of inner dread, she nodded to herself as she turned from the window.

"Shall we go greet these knights of the Empire and the Imperial Knight of Baharuth?"

Both men nodded before falling into step behind the queen.

Down in the courtyard, soldiers of the Dragon Kingdom were busy directing the knights of Baharuth to the locations that they could make camp at with the help of Draconis's forces, who all drew looks from the knights of the Empire. Draconis's forces were sharply dressed and outfitted. Leinas stood a bit flabbergasted as a female soldier took her horse's reigns and guided the mount to the stables. The soldier's uniform; in its pure white that faded to a dark navy blue at her coattails split like some exotic bird, drew her eyes. Black boots reinforced by white and gold shin guards and hardened toes had matching black slacks tucked into the tops of the boots. All of the fabric she could see was so finely woven, that no master artisan of the Empire would be able to reproduce this clothing!

 _They're all outfitted in finery of a closely similar caliber that of those guards that brought the tribute payment! No wonder the Scarlet Swordsman could easily pay the gold Emperor Jircniv put up as a requirement! If these are his rank and file then . . ._

She noticed that men and women not dressed like the young woman who took her horse were standing at attention and she turned her attention towards the castle proper to see a shapely woman followed closely by two men. One was slightly stocky in stature while the other was far better fit and adorned in well crafted, but worn armor. The regal, if tired and weighty expression and posture told Leinas who this woman was without any need of an introduction.

"Your Majesty Draudillon Oriculus." Leinas bowed formally as she saluted.

The Queen of the Dragon Kingdom nodded in return. "Leinas Rockbruise of the Empire. I am honestly and pleasantly surprised at your presence with an entire order of knights. Though the accommodations are sparse and in need of better furnishing . . . I do bid you welcome to the Dragon Kingdom."

Leinas did not comment. There was no need to. She and all her knights had seen the devastation to the capital, a location not yet raided seemed so run down . . . so . . . so barren. It was an eye opener to the despair and desperation in which these people lived with. Even the castle proper was not truly luxurious as it was thought to be . . . or rather, expected to be of the abode which the Queen rested.

Yet as run down and in disrepair as the streets were, the presence of the Scarlet Swordsman and his forces were most definitely felt here. Craftsmen were repairing roads and the walls. She could see uniformed men and women that looked eerily alike a bit too much so . . . helping the people with food and drink. They had even spied them training the people in martial combat and even magical teachings!

How much wealth was being used to restore the capital of the Dragon Kingdom? Was he truly doing all this with no expectation or demand of compensation?! Either he was truly so wealthy that the Empire was a pauper by comparison . . . or he was out of his mind insane! The thoughtful and flitting eye of Leinas was not lost on Draudillon, who smiled to herself mentally.

Lord Karlyle frowned as he stepped forward.

"I am curious Imperial Knight Rockbruise. How did you manage to make that march so quickly with such a large force? When did you depart from the Empire?"

Leinas's visible eye twitched a bit, something that both Whitepeak and Draudillon took notice of. The Imperial Knight recalled the manner in which they had all been transported to just outside the visual range of the Capital of the Dragon Kingdom's watchtowers.

After they had cleared eye sight of the walls of Arwintar, the siblings of Akame and Kurome had led them further away, glancing back over their shoulders periodically before finally coming to a halt. They had scanned the skies for a time and Leinas knew then and there that they could see the invisibly cloaked griffin riders of their nation. A feat that sent a chill down her spine even if many of her knights did not notice the scrutiny that the two young women displayed. She had a feeling that the riders who were probably shadowing them realized this as well and retreated to tell the Emperor.

Both women lifted their hands and a ring on each of their fingers glowed before they waved them in opposite directions, tearing a rift in the air before them wide enough for them all to pass through twenty abreast. It had been this swirling mass of darkness layered in violets and wisps of blue. They had called it a [ _Gate_ ]. A spell greater than [ _Teleportation_ ]! As _rings_!

The thought that Draconis could deploy his forces in such a manner from anywhere _to_ anywhere with such artifacts chilled her soul. Her inner thoughts had traveled back to the audience he had with the Bloody Emperor and his admonishment that the young ruler was not waging "war". She felt ashamed that she had inwardly scoffed at such a declaration, but then and there she began to fear imagining what such a "war" he had fought in if he possessed such powerful objects at his fingertips. After they had passed through and realized they had been transported hundreds of miles in an instant, Leinas had made all of the order swear to keep this secret, even from Jircniv and the other Imperial Knights.

Information was one thing, but she was beginning to understand now just how knowing too much could be worse than not knowing at all. Ignorance was truly bliss.

Bringing herself back to Lord Karlyle's question, she carefully scrutinized the man and saw an odd glint in his eye. The same one Jircniv sometimes possessed when he had an angle to play.

"We were brought here via powerful magic. I will say no more on the matter." She spoke with chopped tone and curt shake of her head, her bangs waved, revealing a shadow of her curse that only Draudillon noticed. The knight turned to Draudillon again and addressed her formally.

"Your Majesty, we are here in accordance with the agreement made with Lord Draconis Brightblade."

The suddenly concerned and stern expression that come over the queen's face took Leinas off guard. Yet her facial expression gave away nothing of her motives.

"Is this agreement the reason for the lack of Lord Draconis's presence now?"

Leinas frowned as she answered. "No Your Majesty. Emperor Jircniv's agreement would not keep him from returning here. For he has already fulfilled the costs for securing our arrival."

The younger man in armor scratched his chin in thought as Draudillon glanced over her shoulder at him. It was curious to Rockbruise. How did Draudillon rule? Was this one of her attendants? A military advisor perhaps?

"Baron Whitepeak, you have something to ask?"

"I do, but it can wait."

As he spoke, a portal opened to the side, mere feet from their group. Samael of The Lair exited with a grim air about him. Leinas tensed and nearly fainted. He was as tall as Draconis easily, but his aura and armor were far more menacing that the refined equipment that the Knight Most Heavenly bore. Even though he possessed no weapon on his person, Samael's presence was suffocating. The gray eyed Shadow Dragon passed his gaze over all present before settling on Draudillon.

His stern presence softened a bit at the sight of her and her veiled concern despite her serious expression.

"Queen Draudillon. My Lord wishes to speak with you for a moment." He stepped aside and bowed while gesturing to the portal. "If you desire it, Baron Whitepeak may join you."

Leinas frowned in concern as Draudillon and Whitepeak did as well. Something would call for her going to see him instead of his coming to speak with her? After what Leinas had witnessed in the swordsman's match with Go Gin in the Grand Arena, it was hard to imagine what could harm him seriously enough to force him to bed rest. He had been impaled to a pillar after all!

"I will go Commander Samael. Will you be remaining here, or accompanying me?" Samael nodded quietly, revealing little. Though everyone present could tell he was tense and controlling his emotions. "Very well. Baron Whitepeak, please update Imperial Knight Rockbruise of our current state of affairs."

"Of course Your Majesty." Baron Whitpeak approached Leinas with a sincere smile and an offered hand. "Well met Imperial Knight Leinas Rocckbruise. I do hope that we can work well together. I am Jeremiah Whitepeak."

Leinas was taken back at the baron's genuine greeting. His tone carried no pomp or circumstance. Nor did his eyes stray from her eye. He did not flinch from her sharp look. Reaching out, she took his hand and shook it firmly.

"Well met Baron Whitepeak."

Satisfied that the good baron could hold down the capital for a short time, Draudillon turned to Samael and nodded.

"Now wait just one moment!" Karlyle's voice thundered and all eyes turned to him. "You may have spoken with Her Majesty, but you shall not be taking her anywhere!"

Draudillon fought the urge to pinch her nose and growl. Samael had not such issues and growled low and hard. His eyes flashed dangerously. Draudillon spoke swiftly and curtly.

"Lord Karlyle, I am not going over this again. Lord Draconis is an honorable man."

The noble made to retort, but a hand on his shoulder halted him. Those present looked at the newcomer with a measure of surprise. Cerabrate the Fierce Flash shook his head negatively at the man he stopped from speaking.

"Let Her Majesty go. The man is as our Queen has said. Do not test his good graces."

Leinas remembered the conversations at the Scarlet Swordsman's audience with the Emperor. That he had bested the Fierce Flash in single combat and held the Adamantite in low regards. Though now it seemed like his defeat may have done the adventurer some good. He had a kind of air about him that spoke of a man trying to make amends for past wrongs.

"Cerabrate?" Draudillon lifted a brow in curiosity. The man bowed in response.

"Your Majesty Draudillon. Please go. We will maintain the capital until your return."

Nodding her acceptance of his words, she proceeded to step into the portal beside Samael. The Commander of The Lair's Guardians followed swiftly and the dark portal closed behind him.

Karlyle fumed and stormed off in outrage. Baron Whitepeak shook his head tiredly as he watched the nobleman depart. Turning to address Leinas and Cerabrate, he motioned to the meeting tents in the distance.

"Come, I shall apprise you of the situation as it stands."

Upon entering, Leinas halted in her tracks at the sight of a broad, geographical map outlining the capital and everything around it for miles. It was incredibly detailed. No cartographer of the Empire could possibly hope to come close to the amount of detail upon this map that rose from the crystal on the table.

All around at various points were groups of symbols that she recognized as military deployments. She felt her jaw hang open at the implications.

 _If those symbols represent the similar ones of our Empire, then he has more than 45,000 troops deployed!_ Leinas began to sweat. Just how much military might did one man possess? Why would a man with so much power ask for reinforcements? They barely had a third of his troop count!

"I know that it is a staggering amount of force from just one man. Yet this is what he has deployed."

Leinas could hear Baron Whitepeak's unspoken words. That it was possible that Draconis Brightblade had yet more forces not dedicated to this fight . . . even more power to call upon.

Her mind swam and choked on the implications. She was no fool to the logistics of keeping an armed force of knights fighting trim. It had to be no small wonder that the Scarlet Swordsman had parted with 80,000 gold without a thought. Then it really hit her and she paled.

He served a Queen . . . a ruler, he was a servant of his nation. If he had this much military might, what did that mean for the Queen who commanded him? How many others were like him? A General of her forces? She shuddered.

The coat of arms she had seen emblazoned on patches and the twin raven haired sisters's coats burned in Leinas's mind. The dragon wrapped around a sword with more swords for wings.

* * *

 **Beastman Kingdoms**

 **Capital Fortress**

* * *

The Magnificent One sat at an empty table, a magical candle lit the room only just. The torn cloak with its coat of arms upon it laid out on the table's surface. He frowned as he racked his brain for why it felt . . . familiar . . .

The Almighty Magnificence raked claws through his mane as he muttered and mumbled to himself while glaring at the coat of arms in front of him.

"What's the damned deal with this stupid coat of arms?"

He huffed and tossed the offending cloth to the floor and made his way to the weapon rack. He was feeling like some exercise. Stepping out into an open arena, humans young and old of both sexes were scattered about. Even some beastmen were among them. Detractors to his supreme reign . . . traitors . . . target practice.

"Run around and try to keep it interesting. I might spare one of you . . ." he hefted his axe and began walking towards the nearest person. A young man just only come of age at fifteen. He held a broken spear as he glared at the axe wielding ruler. "Oh? You have balls kid. Just for that I'll let you hit me."

He opened his arms wide and the boy stared in shock for a moment before yelling at the top of his lungs and stabbing at his gut. The broken weapon was not even magical, so it shattered against the king. The kid continued to stab even as the weapon splintered into his own hands until nothing was left. Undaunted, he began punching to no avail. Pure hatred radiated in his eyes.

"HahahHAHAHA! You're one in a million kid! Tell ya what!" He bent close to the kid. "Kill all the humans here, and I'll let you live. I'll even train you!"

He drew the spare sword on his belt and tossed it at the boy's feet. "Well? Go on . . ." A sneer crossed the king's lips. "Kill them."

The boy reached down and picked up the surprisingly heavy blade. Turning, he began a menacing march towards the first humans he set eyes on. Another set of kids his age. One by one they began to turn and run, all they could see was death in his eyes. He began running after them and the killing began as his messy slashes left unskilled wounds that could not instantly slay their target.

His Magnificence began to cackled at the sight of slaughter. THIS was entertaining!

Up above in one of the viewing boxes, the jaguar beastman snarled at the carnage unfolding below.

"What a damned waste." Khan Ziang Lu Quan said gruffly with his arms over his chest. He let a hand brush the hilt of the sword at his side. One of the treasures of the Silent City. He had not brought Julia with him to the meeting for rather obvious reasons. He had cleaned his fur with her help though. He felt fresh and sharp.

Silverwind was also in attendance today. Her multicolored feathers like that of a peacock combined with the shape and form of a falcons, made her sleek and vibrant. The magical bow strapped over her shoulder radiated power. She and Lu Quan were two of the strongest clan leaders present.

Four others were also gathered around. One was a lupine beastman with a wicked scar over both his eyes. They had been healed by a shaman and in turn his eyesight had somehow become keener. Yet they had also taken on a gleaming hue like gemstones. He was a well versed in group tactics and hunting. He fought with his fists and claws, a "Martial Artist" in a sense. Clipped to a roughly crafted leather belt were a pair of katar. Not relics like what Lu Quan or Silverwind possessed, but still powerful.

"What say you Shining Eyes?" The wolf like beastman grunted evenly. He cared not either way. Though he did see the shortage of humans disturbing as well. As a hunter, his clan was one of the few able to supplement what was now considered the norm of human hunting with other means of food. Though he was not above eating human flesh when nothing else was possible to obtain, he did find their screaming grating on his sensitive ears.

Lu Quan shook his head, the orange and black striped mane rippled back and forth by the action.

"You're too soft Lu Quan. It will be your death one day." A leathery voice hissed at him. The owner sidled up to Silverwind and she clicked her beak at him in warning.

"Keep your slithering form away from my feathers Rotfang . . . you two tipped tongue waggler." She glared openly at him. The snake like beastman held diamond patterns upon his scales and his fangs dripped with toxic venom that was necrotic in nature.

"Ooh . . . so scary Ssssilverwind. You've nothing to worry about from me. You haven't the meat on you to enjoy, unlike human flesh." He flickered his forked tongue at Silverwind in mockery. A pair of fingers whipped forth and snared his tongue, making him cough as he struggled to retract it to little avail. The culprit glared at him.

"Enough you scaled vermin." The last of their number rumbled deeply. "Let's get this meeting over with. The smell of blood is making me . . . hungry . . ." A dark growl escaped his gut. This one was not at all ashamed of consuming human flesh. He stood a whole torso height over Lu Quan.

"You would let your cravings get the better of you Broadtusk." Lu Quan huffed. The minotaur was a massive being with enough strength to wield two great battle axes in each hand. Their dual headed blades were also treasures of the Silent City.

Broadtusk reveled in bloodshed and had grown quite the taste for human flesh. Though they were horns and not tusks, the minotaur certainly did not mind the moniker.

"I can't help it when the blood and screams are fresh. Let us hurry with this meeting and I might yet manage to pick off a straggler."

Silverwind and Lu Quan clicked their tongues in disgust. If they were lucky, Rotfang and Broadtusk would both meet ends like that of Terramist. They could only hope. Rotfang chortled in humor at the minotaur's desires for blood and flesh. Personally, Rotfang preferred infants and small children he could swallow whole and digest over long periods of time.

A rough cough drew their attention and the jaguar like beastman glared at them all.

"I have called this meeting due to the developments in the Dragon Kingdom. Lu Quan has the best understanding of it. He will explain what has transpired these past few weeks."

The tiger beastman nodded firmly and began to tell of everything his scouts and his own investigations had revealed about these newcomers to the Dragon Kingdom. All the while, the sounds of slaughter down below echoed into the air.

* * *

 **Reader Review Responses**

* * *

 **Hey all. Another longer than normal chapter. The updates are slow, I know. Hopefully this sates the hunger a bit.**

 **On a long streak of work lately with little to no days off to spend on The Exiled like I want to. The Holidays coming up this year don't help in that regard . . . booo . . .**

 **Onto the responses!**

 **Cmnd Yammark:** I'm not normally huge on crossovers with other genres. I do thank you for the support, but tributes and same universe stories is about as far as I normally take my work.

 **Pwashington:** I am well aware of the Epic Level Handbooks in Dungeons and Dragons and Pathfinder, but those levels get out of hand REALLY quick. At those levels you're fighting demigods and actual gods. Since the canon in Overlord sees Ainz not gaining power beyond Level 100, Draconis won't either unless something else releases. Now, learning new things is another thing altogether, just the level up won't likely happen though.

 **FanGuy59:** Thanks again for another review! I have had several friends into Overlord theory that reason as well. I hope this chapter give you more food for thought.

 **UndeadLord22:** Well, it's certainly not my intention of dying on anyone. Family is doing well all things considered, just everything kinda piled up in a three month period, so that took priority over everything but work.

 **Wacko12:** Read on to find out . . .

 **Fanbooooooy:** Merlin was not transported, but will get referenced quite a bit at times.

 **Dimension Distorter:** I've been a Dungeons and Dragons player and other Table Top RPG player and Game Master for 17 years and going. I pull a lot from old games I've played and the ENWorld forum discussions about power level issues and balancing in addition to wilder ideas for homebrew, which can get utterly unbalanced really quick.

Yes, I did buff the hells out of [ _Mage Hand_ ]. Glad you caught that. XD

Just be glad the Peasant Railgun doesn't work in this world . . . oh gods . . .

 **Akuma-Heika:** Yes, The Goal of All Life is Death DOES do that. I do understand that. Yet it's a single shot every two and a half days skill. So if multiple targets have any kind of contingency, it gets hosed.

That being said, not everyone would use something like that due to many differing factors. Though those that DO plan for something like an Instant Death . . .

 **Mad-Dan90:** Gotta have a megalomaniac somewhere in this fic that's evil as hells.

 **PervySageChuck:** I can understand that. Hope you enjoy the chapter!

 **Buujack:** The "Men of the Kingdom" arc will be quite different from canon. So YES, this is where things will really begin to change.

 **Kinoi:** I can understand your view on that. Yet art and writing are two different creatures. I see the fan art and other pictures created by fans like a form of advertising that the author/creator didn't need to pay for.

Yet something about writing is . . . for me . . . fundamentally different. Nothing any fanfic writer puts out is canon or ever will be without the written permission of the original creator. The artwork put out there is normally fun tributes and amazing pieces, but just something about having another writer's pay and life being paid for by working their own ideas and taking credit is . . . off putting.

Never mind the cultural mindset from nation to nation is vastly different. But look how Maruyama is reacting to the whole sidestory with Evileye getting fan-translated. That's raised a stink even we overseas folk smell. I'm fairly certain he's not too concerned over fanart, but he's raising a fuss over the fantranslation of an "exclusive" story only meant originally for those who bought the Blue Ray Specials of Overlord in Japan.

Now, do I agree with his reaction? Half yes, and Half no. Yes, I can understand the frustrations of lost revenue, but on the other hand, really? In this day and age of cyber connection? He hit the cult following internationally and is raising flags over something outside of his and the company he is publishing with's control? That's the problem making anything popular into a "Only MY nation's people can get it." That doesn't fly when your work gets well known all over the anime and manga world.

But that's his priority as its creator. That's a different cat out of the bag.

The issue at its core is that, even though the fanfic writer (like myself) expands on what is known, at the end of the day, we are working and creating off the backbones of something already thought up. Regardless of how good or bad it is received or perceived, the core is not ours. Thus, his copyrights and trademarks are HIS and the Company he works with. For us to make a living off of that writing fanfiction . . . it's not the same as artwork and pics or memes we can all laugh at. That difference may not mean much to some, but to me it does.

As such I will never take donations or money for any fanfiction I write unless one day the creator for whatever I'm working on gets in touch themselves and gives me express, written permission to take payment for my efforts. It's just my view.

But yes, I do understand where you are coming from. It's a gray area. But why flirt with possible fines and fees?

 **Lew89:** Heya! Thanks for reading and I hope you continue to enjoy the fic!

 **Kotomine_Hazel:** Thank you so much for the review! I know it's been a bit since the last chapter, but I hope you keep enjoying the snippets and tributes to Dungeons and Dragons in The Exiled! I want to visit Japan again, but it's so expensive just for the plane tickets . . . lived in Japan for 9 Years and miss the food and nature the most.

 **Guest:** Sir, I believe you need to go and learn what exactly a Worker is in the Overlord canon.

While there certainly are criminals in the Worker society as a whole, not all of them are. The Adventurer's Guild is as Ainz put it, Not truly adventurers. If anything, THE WORKERS are the REAL adventurers.

The Adventurer's Guild has lots and lots of rules, regulations, and restrictions in return for perks like PRE-SCOUTED WORK. Meaning the Adventurer Teams got work already "classified" by rogue scout like class specialists in the Guild. They could not take Political jobs, COUGH, Blue Roses breaks the rules and gets away with it b/c Adamantite Ranking. Yet even then! They KNOW they should not be and are risking their reputations in the Guild by doing so for Renner.

This is a problem even Ainz realizes needs to be fixed. Many Workers "illegal" activities are illegal by the Adventurer Guild's rules, not the rules and laws of Nations. They get paid more on average, but they RISK way more due to the unscouted nature of their work. Many also were Workers due to the restrictions on HELPING people. Healing HAD to be paid for to the Adventurer's Guild of those healing. As such, countless untold numbers went without and many died without it. Roberdyck of Foresight is a healer who did not stand to be restricted to healing and helping only those the Guild told him he was allowed to when true help was needed even though they had no means to pay. That restriction made him not be an adventurer, chained by rules and regulations, but a free agent. A man who could do good even though he had no backing.

So while many were indeed criminals. Even Overlord states that it was not always the case, and THAT is why the Worker Raid and Ainz's influence on it via Fluder Paradyne tricking the Duke to "test" Nazaricks defenses is a hot topic of flames and arguments. Did some of them deserve it? Most definitely, but did all of them? Nope.

 **Dblaviken:** Thank you for the review. I am glad you are enjoying The Exiled. I get your need to point out something to another reviewer, but please don't. At least not on the reviews. A forum, sure, fire away. Just not on the reviews.

I did enjoy the Rocky quote, and it's true.

 **RagingCajun:** Yeah, Chuck is back. Lolz.

 **Generation Zero:** Writing Ainz as a learning, competent and still evil villain is a fun challenge and one I hope to do well enough to not break his character out of the water. Having Albedo be his confidant was a natural thing to lean towards due to his botch up before the end of the Servers. In spite of her unhinged tendencies at times, I find it hard to believe that other than the snide quip at the end of her background information, that her creator would not have her background include competent, calculating thoughts and the ability to learn quickly as a leader.

Draconis has also been influenced by his classes and race like Ainz/Momonga has, but in the opposite alignment. His decisions aren't fully just the Gamer within him anymore. So some of his decisions will be bad for him at times.

 **Solarblaster:** Hey hey! Just keep in mind that PM were shuffled back and forth about the review you gave me! Thanks for reading!

 **Varcisis:** Thanks for the review! Hope this chapter entertained.

* * *

 **So! THUS BEGINS THE DRAGON KINGDOM WAR IN ERNEST. How will these battles between Dragon Kingdom, Draconis's forces, the Empire's Order of Knights, Phantasmagoria's Silent Army, and the Beastmen Kingdoms fare? Who knows!**

 **As all sides of the conflict begin to consolidate their information and rearrange their forces, only bloodshed can be guaranteed. PREPARE FOR WAR!**


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